Sweet Macanese delights

From light, flavoursome custards to fluffy, scrumptious cakes and puddings, end your meals on a sweet high with Macanese desserts

Sweet Potato Cake

Ingredients: Around 180 gm of sweet potato or regular potato mashed; 70 gm of condensed milk; 100 gm of butter; 140 gm of sugar; 100 ml of coconut milk; 140 gm of flour; 3 egg yolks and 1 egg.
Method: Mash the cooked potatoes into fine purée. Cream the butter and sugar until soft and fluffy; gradually beat in the egg. Add the flour, the potato purée and the coconut milk. Finally, mix in the condensed milk. Pour the batter into buttered, floured mould and bake in an oven at 200°C for about an hour.

Serradura

Ingredients: Around 15 Marie biscuits; ½ tsp of vanilla extract; ½ cup of condensed milk and a cup of heavy cream.
Method: Grind the biscuits into a fine crumble. In a bowl pour the heavy cream and with a spoon, stir it well until it forms peaks. Once the cream forms peaks, pour in the sweet condensed milk and vanilla extract and continue stirring until the mixture reaches an even consistency. Now begin pouring in a layer of the cream into a serving glass. Repeat the process of adding the cream and then the Marie crumble until the top of the glass is covered with a layer of the crumble. Chill and serve.

Egg custard tarts

Egg Custard Tart

Ingredients: For the puff pastry, 2½ cups of flour; 1 tbsp of milk powder; 2 tbsps of shortening; ¼ tsp of salt; 1 egg; 1/3 cup of ice water and ¾ cup of butter. For the custard, ½ cup of sugar; 8 egg yolks; ½ cup of milk and ½ cup of heavy cream.
Method: Sift flour and milk powder into a mixing bowl. Add shortening, salt, egg, water and mix until it forms into a smooth ball. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes. Bring butter to room temperature, and cut into slices. Roll dough out into a big rectangle and arrange butter pieces on half of the dough, fold dough over to cover the butter pieces, press with hands and then roll out with a rolling pin. Sprinkle the top with flour, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes. Turn dough a quarter turn, fold into threes and roll out. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest. Repeat this 4 times. Finally, roll the dough out into a large rectangle and fold onto itself like a jelly-roll. Let it rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the cream and the milk and bring to a boil. Whisk the sugar with the egg yolks until the mixture is pale, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the egg mixture while whisking constantly. Strain and reserve. Boil the sugar and water to make a syrup. Cool and reserve. Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan. Cut 12 thick slices from the rolled up dough. Line the muffin cups with this and fill with egg mixture about ¾ full. Bake at 400°F for 20 minutes, until brown spots appear on the surface of the filling.

(Courtesy: Macao government tourism office)