Milk Tart (Melk Tert) Recipe - For My Dear Friend, Di !

The Milk Tart, still warm out of the oven .... although I think it tastes best served slightly chilled.

I have a very dear friend from my childhood called Di. We’ve been friends for so many years now that I’ve lost count …. we were out of touch for a few years and then just picked up again right where we’d left off (isn’t that the great thing about true friends ?!) Di, who is originally from South Africa, now lives in Australia with her husband and 2 kids and is probably the ‘coolest’ Mum I know …. she’s travelled around the world (Borneo and Vietnam were recent visits of hers) & does things like swim with ‘wild’ dolphins (they live near the beach) and is game for anything, with an incredible sense of humour and outlook on life !

Di and I are in regular contact … at least every other week, and she has read and supported this blog from the very beginning. I only wish that we lived closer, ‘cause I know that we would have so much fun together if we could see each other regularly.

A delicious slice of Milk Tart, just waiting to be eaten. (I think a similar tart is known as a 'Custard Tart' in other parts of the world ?)

Anyway, this recipe (which several people have asked me to put on the blog) for the traditional South African dish ‘Milk Tart’ is for Di … to remind her of her South African roots and our childhood. My only wish is that she lived close enough to enjoy a slice (or two !) of it in person with me ! (Or failing that – that her next international flight destination is TANZANIA !!)

Milk Tart Crust (both the Crust and the Filling recipe come from the book ‘Cook and Enjoy It’ by S.J.A. de Villiers)

15 ml (1 tbsp) Butter or Margarine
125 ml (1/2 cup) self-raising Flour
15 ml (1 tbsp) Sugar
Pinch of Salt
1 large Egg

Run the butter into the self-raising flour and add the sugar and salt. Add the beaten egg & mix to form a stiff dough. Using a knife, cover the bottom and sides of a pie dish (this mixture covers a 21 cm/8 ½ inch dish) with a thin layer of the dough. Set aside in a cool place whilst you prepare the filling -:


Milk Tart Filling

500 ml’s (2 cups) Milk
1 piece stick Cinnamon (or grated yellow rind of 1 orange)
60 ml (1/4 cup) Sugar
45 ml (3 tbsp) Cake Flour
15 ml (1 tbsp) Cornflour (Cornstarch)
1 ml (1/4 tsp) Salt
30 ml (2 tbsp) Butter
3 Eggs
Cinnamon Sugar

Boil the milk with the cinnamon stick. Combine the sugar, cake flour, cornflour and salt. Gradually add the hot milk, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes until the mixture is thick and cooked through. Remove from heat, remove the cinnamon stick and add the butter. Cool slightly. Beat the eggs and add. Pour the mixture into the pastry lined pie dish and bake for 10 minutes at 220’C/425’F/Gas Mark 7 before reducing the heat to 200’C/400’F/Gas Mark 6 and baking it for a further 10 minutes. Cool slightly and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. (I just use cinnamon on it’s own.) Can be served hot or cold (I think cold is best !)

Losing A Wheel !

We were extremely lucky that the car didn't roll as it swerved out of control on 3 wheels .......

Two weekend's ago, when my mother-in-law was still visiting us from the UK, we decided to go through to one of the major towns for lunch at one of our favourite (Indian) restaurants. We had just left the farm, and around 15 minutes into our journey (we were not yet on tar and were still driving on the dirt road) my husband, who was driving, suddenly lost control of the car and we started swerving all over the road, almost rolling the car. It was pretty scary, I was sitting in the back between the 2 kids (both strapped in) & just grabbed on to both of them as best I could and held my breath .... as we skidded all over the road & finally ground to a shuddering halt.

My first thought was that we'd had a burst tyre .... we all got out of the car (baby son had been asleep and continued sleeping throughout !) to survey the damage - we'd lost our back left wheel/tyre (thank goodness hubby hadn't been driving any faster than he was, else we would've flipped the car for sure).

Every single passerby - without exception - stopped to offer their help to us

We had recently - a week before - broken the back left hand shock absorber when we mistakenly hit an unmarked speed bump (or 'sleeping policeman' as we like to call them here) on our way to the Tanzanian coast for a few day's break. Hubby had replaced it himself upon our return, but had left the farm mechanic to put the tyre back on & tighten the wheel nuts - which were obviously not tightened enough, which is why we lost the entire wheel ! (And yes - incase you were wondering - I did have choice words with hubby on the side of the road as to why he hadn't CHECKED IT HIMSELF !!!!)

The wheel studs broke off & this is what remained of our wheel !

Anyway .... there we were ..... all dressed up with no where to go .... stranded on a fairly remote strip of road in the blazing hot African sun ..... missing a wheel which we searched for to no avail. By this time lots of people (mainly kids) had appeared out of nowhere to help us look for it. A young boy called Samuel eventually found it for us .... buried deep within the grass on the roadside ... and he proudly rolled it up to the car for us, as his friends cheered him on !

Two of our farm mechanics arrive to survey the damage, and bring us a 'rescue' vehicle to drive back to the farm in !

We waited on the roadside for about half an hour waiting for our farm mechanics to arrive to 'rescue' us (hubby had managed to phone one of them - thank goodness for more reliable mobile 'phone networks in our remoter areas these days) and in the meantime I began chatting to the children, who were gathered around and watching everything with great interest - we were their daily entertainment ! I asked them in Swahili, if any of them spoke English, and Samuel replied on their behalf 'Yes, a little'. I then asked them if they all went to school and they replied proudly 'Yes !' and Samuel was very pleased to tell me that he attends 'Secondary' school. He was such a polite and helpful child, and I gave him a small gift ('to buy yourself and your friends some soda's') as a thank you for retrieving our wheel for us.

Every single person who passed us during the time we were sitting on the roadside, stopped to offer their help - be it people in vehicles (few & far between), trucks, on bicycle or on foot - both old and young alike. But then, that's the spirit of Tanzania and her people !

Our car has since been repaired and is back on the road again. (The damage included a bent shock absorber, broken wheel studs, broken hand brake cable, shattered brake disk and we also lost the brake pads !) I took the opportunity to point out to hubby after the incident 'It would probably never have happened if we'd been driving a Landrover instead !' ('cause you all know I'm a Landrover girl at heart ;)

But jokes aside, we are lucky that we were all safe, as things could have been a lot worse.

Upside Down Caramelised Tomato & Onion Tart

This tart is great served either hot or cold, and seems to taste even better the following day !

This is a great lunch dish and can be served either hot or cold. It does take some time to put together, but is well worth the effort.

I also like this recipe because nearly all the ingredients in it, are basic things which you usually have in your kitchen – it’s a great recipe for me, living so far away from the shops, if I suddenly hear that we have guests on the way & I need to make something nice to serve and have low food stocks ! It’s also great for vegetarians.

I have adapted the recipe slightly, and have added notes in where I have done so. (Have also adjusted the measurements for overseas readers !) I also think it might be rather nice with feta cheese crumbled over the top just before serving ….

Never mind the slightly fancy name - my 5 year old daughter simply calls this ‘Tomato Cake’ !


Upside Down Caramelised Tomato and Onion Tart (from ‘The Good Food Cookbook’ by Ina Paarman)

6 – 8 ripe red tomatoes, cut into quarters
Herb salad dressing (I used olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper & dried basil instead)
2 Red Peppers, seeded & cut into eighths (I left these out as I did not have any)
5 medium-sized Onions, sliced into half circles
3 T (45 ml/1.5 fl oz) Butter or Olive Oil
Garlic & Herb Seasoning (I used salt & freshly ground black pepper)
¾ cup (150 gm/5 oz) Sugar (I used brown sugar)
1 T (15 ml/1/2 fl oz) Water
Shortcrust Pastry (see recipe below – which needs to be doubled)
Fresh herbs for garnishing (I used rosemary sprigs)

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 7/425’F/220’C. Toss the tomatoes with the dressing & arrange skin side down in a non-stick roasting pan lined with baking paper. Toss the peppers in a little more dressing & add to the tomatoes. Roast for 35 – 45 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Turn the oven down to Gas Mark 6/400’F/200’C.

Sauté the onions in the butter (or olive oil), then turn the heat right down. Cover the onions with greaseproof paper as well as a lid. Cook for 20 – 25 minutes until the onions are soft & mushy. (I didn’t do this, I simply sautéed them on a low heat in an open pan) Season. Leave to cool.

In a heavy based saucepan, melt & caramelise the sugar over high heat, while shaking the pot all the time – do not stir. Add the tablespoon of water (be careful when adding the water as it might spit) to thin the syrup out a little & pour it into a 25 cm/10 inch ovenproof porcelain flan dish. Tilt the dish to coat the bottom & halfway up the sides. Arrange the cooked tomatoes (skin side down) and the peppers to cover the base of the dish in a pretty pattern. Spoon the onions over the top & smooth.

Cover the top of the pie with shortcrust pastry, making sure it is properly sealed. Trim pastry level with the edge of the dish. Bake at Gas Mark 6/400’F/200’C for 25 – 30 minutes until the pastry is crisp & golden brown. Remove from the oven & leave to stand for about 10 minutes. Turn a large round plate upside down on top of the flan dish & invert the pie on the plate. Garnish with fresh herbs, such as basil.

Serves 6 – 8

Shortcrust Pastry (you need to double this recipe as I found this amount was just not enough to cover the tart with)

1 cup (120 gm/4.5 oz) Flour
½ tsp (2.5 ml/pinch) Salt
4 T (60 gm/2 oz) butter, at fridge temperature
1 Egg Yolk
2 T (30 ml/1 fl oz) cold Water

Sift the flour & salt twice & rub in the butter to form coarse crumbs. Mix the egg yolk with cold water & add to the flour. Cut the liquid in with a small knife to form a lumpy mixture. Use your hands to gather & knead the mixture together until it forms a ball. Don’t add more water, simply keep working the dough lightly. Wrap the dough in plastic film & leave to rest in the fridge (in cooler weather, it is best to leave out of the fridge, as it can become to hard & brittle). Roll out to 1 cm/1/2 inch thickness. Fold into thirds & roll out again to 2 mm/1/4 inch thickness on a well-floured surface, using a floured rolling pin. (This preliminary rolling makes the dough much easier to handle).