Learning to Make Portuguese Tarts at an Online Pastel de Nata Workshop

Learning to Make Portuguese Tarts at an Online Pastel de Nata Workshop

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I’ll travel for dessert.  And high on that list of desserts is a pastel de nata in Lisbon, Portugal.  So, when I discovered that you could learn how to make the custard tarts at a Pastel de Nata Workshop in Lisbon, I had to sign up.

It wasn’t just any Lisbon cooking class.  It’s an opportunity to learn from a Pastel de Nata Master in an actual bakery.  Our expert teacher,  João, is the owner of the award winning bakery, Pastalaria Batalha.

And João was prepared to share his secrets to making Portuguese tarts – – one of my favourite desserts in the world.

UPDATE:  Sadly, in the wake of the pandemic, João has had to close the Lisbon bakery.  But you can still take the class online, and there are two other bakery locations in Portugal (addresses below).  This post describes my experience at the Lisbon bakery, but you will learn the same sweet secrets online.

Learning about Portuguese Custard Tarts at the Pastel de Nata workshop:

Portuguese custard tarts at a Pastel de Nata Workshop in Lisbon

If you’re new to nata, here’s why I’m so crazy about them.   Essentially, it’s a crunchy puff pastry tart filled with sweet and silky custard that’s caramelized on top.  The tarts are best eaten warm out of the oven, with a light sprinkle of cinnamon (total bliss!).  They’re sold all over Lisbon, usually for one Euro.

The name pastel de nata (pronounced pash-tel de nah-ta) means cream pastry.  If we’re talking about more than one (and why would you limit yourself to just one), the plural is pastéis de nata.

The real story of how the pastel de nata was invented:

The story goes that pastéis de nata were invented about 300 years ago by monks at the Jerónimos Monastery in Belém, west of Lisbon.  At the time, the nuns used egg whites to starch their uniforms, and came up with pastéis de nata as a delicious use for the egg yolks.  When the monastery closed, the secret recipe was sold to Pastéis de Belém, a shop nearby.   The shop is still there and tourists stand in long line-ups to get them.  (In my view, they’re worth a try, but not the best in town.)

It’s a good story, and good marketing, according to João.  In fact, there are records from all over Portugal of the pastel de nata recipe dating back to the 12th century, he told us.  It’s more likely that the recipe was developed by the cooks that accompanied children of wealthy families when they were sent to churches to learn to read and write.  These cooks were the best chefs and had all the time in the world, said João.

Nowadays, the pastel de nata is an iconic food of Portugal and gaining popularity all over the world.

Pastalaria Batalha

Lisbon bakery - Pastel de Nata Workshop

João opened Pastelaria Batalha on Camões Square in the centre of Lisbon in 2017 (now closed). But really, it’s been in the making over five generations of his family.

It all started started when João was a kid by making coffee and sangria in his family’s restaurant.  He learned how to bake pastries and bread by the age of 14 and went on to study hospitality management.

And João puts a lot of stock in tradition, using family recipes that have been handed down over the ages.  The bakery’s logo pays homage to Beatriz Costa, an actress from the golden age of Portuguese cinema who was from his family’s home town, Charneca.

It’s all turning out to be a recipe for success.  In the last two years, Pastalaria Batalha has twice won the bronze medal in the Best Pastel de Nata Competition in Lisbon.

Bliss tip! Where to stay in Lisbon:

Alecrim ao Chiado is my favourite guesthouse in Lisbon.  It’s an affordable 4-star stay in the Chiado neighbourhood in central Lisbon.

      Check pricing and reviews for Alecrim ao Chiado.

Medal winning Portuguese desserts as starters

Portuguese desserts - Pastel de Nata workshop

João made sure we were fortified for the workshop by serving up some traditional Portuguese sweets before things got underway.

The one on the left is a silver medal winning Lisbon cheesecake (queijada de Lisboa), baked with lemon and almonds, based on his Mom’s recipe.  the other is a tart made with white beans (pastel de feijão).   A dessert made with white beans may sound odd, but it’s creamy and sweet and has won the gold medal for the last two years.  Made with almond flour, it’s also gluten-free.

Suiting up for the Pastel de Nata workshop

Pastel de Nata Workshop in Lisbon, Portugal

Photo by Pastalaria Batalha

Since the workshop took place in a real bakery,  everyone has to observe hygienic standards by washing their hands with antibacterial soap, and wearing the special Pastalaria Batalha aprons and shoe coverings.  We also wore hairnets….just not for the photo.

By the way, you don’t need any special experience to participate in the workshop.  I am proof of that.  My expertise is in eating pastéis de nata.  (I think I once polished off 6 in a day!).

It’s not the Batalha apron, but you can get a pastel de nata apron of your own with this link.

Learning to make puff pastry

Cooking class Lisbon - Pastel de Nata workshop

João uses margarine, instead of butter, for his puff pastry, and, as you can see, it’s just a little!  He showed us how to work the margarine into the pastry and to fold the dough to create the layers.

How to make custard tarts

Of course, the bakery had equipment for mixing and rolling the dough, but you can use a food processor (or your hands) and a rolling pin when you make the pastéis de nata at home.

After the dough was mixed, we all got a chance to play with some to see how stretchy it was.

Pastel de nata workshop, Lisbon, Portugal

Pastel de nata dough rolling success!

After making a sheet of dough, we rolled it into a tube shape and then left it to chill in the fridge while we made the custard.

Making Lisbon custard tarts

Check out those buttery layers!

Making the custard filling

Making the custard for pastel de nata in Lisbon

For the custard, we brought milk, with a bit of lemon zest and a cinnamon stick, to a boil.  Then João turned down the temperature while adding a sugar and flour mixture, using a whisk to avoid any clumping and to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom.

Once this reached a custard consistency, it had to cool before adding many egg yolks, which is, of course, why some call them Portuguese egg tarts.

The trick to form the pastry shells

To this day, the dough for pastéis de nata is formed in molds by hand.  The experts can do it in seconds.

After we cut the tube of dough into (sort of) evenly sized chunks, João showed us the trick to pressing the dough into the pastel de nata molds.

We each did three, and while they weren’t exactly perfect, they did the job.

Then we took turns filling the tarts with the custard using a filling dispenser.

Pastel de nata cooking class Lisbon

Cooked to perfection

Portuguese custard tarts cooking class

The pastéis de nata took about 12 minutes to bake with a turn halfway through to make sure they were cooked evenly.

While they were baking (and my anticipation was building), we chatted about the process and João shared stories about the bakery and the history of the famous Portuguese tart.

Time to eat pastéis de nata!

Portuguese tarts

Once the tarts had cooled sufficiently, it was time to enjoy.  There were three tarts for each of us (I took two with me), along with some sour cherry liqueur (ginginha).  Delicious!

By the way, a pastel de nata is meant to be eaten with your hands, and you don’t need to worry about the calories.  It depends on the recipe, but there are generally under 200 calories in one of the tarts.  Plus, there are a lot of hills to climb in Lisbon.

Get the secret recipe to make pastel de nata at home:

Download the PASTEL DE NATA recipe from Pastalaria Batalha.   Tip:  You can get the tins on Amazon here.

Overall, I’d say that the Pastel de Nata Workshop was a lot of tasty fun..  The bonus is that you learn the tricks to make this fantastic treat at home.  A little knowledge could be a dangerous thing!

More Information:

Pastalaria Batalha locations: The bakery’s two remaining locations are:  

  • In Charneca: R. Inspector Ricardo Rosa e Alberty 9, Venda do Pinheiro
  • In Venda do Pinheiro:  Largo de Santo António 1, 2665-584 Venda do Pinheiro

Book the workshop:

Where to stay in Lisbon: Check pricing and availability for Alecrim ao Chiado, my favourite guesthouse in Lisbon.

Suggested Reading: DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Lisbon, Lonely Planet Pocket Lisbon (Travel Guide), For the Love of Portuguese Food

Travel Bliss Now was welcomed as a guest by Pastalaria Batalha, but my opinions are, as always, my own.

Pin it:

Learn to make Portuguese custard tarts at a Pastel de Nata online workshop | Things to do online | Lisbon food | Portuguese desserts | Online cooking class
You may also like:

The Best Virtual Cooking Classes from around the World + Cocktails

How to Eat Like a Local in Lisbon, Portugal

How to Get the Best Photos in Lisbon

How to Eat Like a Local in Porto, Portugal

 

There are 18 comments for this article
  1. Nic at 9:52 pm

    I’ve never tried these but we do have something similar in England that I used to love as a kid! It’s always fun to learn to make local food, I really think food is such an important part of a culture so learning about it is a perfect way to get to know a place more.

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 10:01 pm

      I agree! It was a truly local experience with a business owner who shared the history and traditions behind this dessert. You must give them a try sometime. Thanks Nic!

  2. Sandra Papas at 10:03 pm

    I’m not sure I could do this class without eating everything! It would be great to learn how they get the pastry so crisp but I seriously have a major addiction to those tarts.

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 10:12 pm

      So do I! I am a little concerned about making them at home, in case I’m good at it. Thanks Sandra.

  3. Rochelle at 12:17 am

    OMG that pastry looked amazing! I’d definitely love to learn to cook that! I will add it to my list of things to do in Lisbon. Thanks

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 12:25 am

      Oh, if you’re a dessert person, you have to try them. They taste even better than they look. Thanks Veronica!

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 12:35 am

      It was a wonderful and delicious local experience. I hope you get a chance to do it. Thanks Delphine!

  4. Carol Colborn at 11:37 am

    Portugal is high on our bucket list. We would like to stay for at least a month. And this is one of the things I will sample and to take back with me, I will have to learn how to bake it!

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 10:46 pm

      A month in Portugal would be perfect. It’s become one of my favourite countries and I’m sure you would enjoy the Pastel de Nata Workshop in Lisbon.

  5. Ketki at 1:01 pm

    You had me at crunchy puff pastry tart filled with sweet and silky custard with caramelized top. That dessert looks surreal and by the looks of it, so worth trying. I’d love to enroll into Pastel de Nata Workshop for a dessert like that!

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 12:59 am

      The Pastel de Nata Workshop in Lisbon is definitely fun and satisfying! You have to try them. Thanks Ketki!

  6. Ryan K Biddulph at 5:13 am

    What a delicious sounding desert Cindy. Betcha I can find a good one here as we have huge communities of Portugal folks in Northern New Jersey. Restaurants everywhere. One of my street LOL.

    • TravelBlissNow Author at 3:41 am

      I have heard that there are good ones in New Jersey and I’d be happy to try them out! Of course, a trip to Lisbon is always good too. Thanks Ryan!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.