Natillas
Natillas is a grandmother's dessert in Spain: milk infused with a cinnamon stick and lemon peel, thickened with egg yolks and a little starch, poured into bowls and dusted with cinnamon. In many homes a Maria biscuit sits in each bowl, soaking up the custard. It is a gentler, looser relative of crema catalana — no caramel crust, eaten with a spoon straight from the fridge. The whole art is low heat and constant stirring, so the yolks do not curdle.
Your own work in that: 5 min.
- Infusing the milk 25 min
- Cooking the custard 15 min
- Portioning 5 min
- Chilling 150 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneInfuse the milk
Bring the milk to the boil with the cinnamon stick and lemon peel (yellow part only), take off the heat, cover and leave 15 minutes to infuse.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Cinnamon and lemon perfume the milk.Beat the yolks
In a bowl whisk the yolks with the sugar and cornflour until paler and free of lumps.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Temper the yolks
Remove the cinnamon and peel from the milk. Pour the warm milk onto the yolks in a thin stream, whisking all the time — hot milk added at once would scramble them.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Cook the custard
Return everything to the pan and cook over low heat for 8–10 minutes, stirring without stopping with a wooden spoon, until the custard thickens, coats the spoon and the first few bubbles appear. Then cook about a minute more, still stirring — the starch stops the yolks curdling, and this brief boil keeps the custard from thinning in the fridge. Do not let it boil hard.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Ready when it coats the back of the spoon.Check the texture
Draw a finger across the back of the spoon — if the line holds, it is done. If lumps have formed, pass it through a sieve.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Pour into bowls
Put a biscuit in each of six bowls and pour over the hot custard — the biscuit will float or soak; both are traditional.
Ingredients: 6 pcs Maria biscuits (or plain rich tea biscuits) · 1 tsp ground cinnamon
A biscuit in every bowl.Chill
Cool for about 30 minutes to room temperature, then refrigerate at least 2 hours. If you dislike a skin, press cling film onto each surface.
Ingredients: 1000 ml whole milk · 1 pcs cinnamon stick · 1 pcs strip of lemon peel · 6 pcs egg yolks · 150 g sugar · 30 g cornflour
Dust and serve
Just before serving, dust with cinnamon. Serve cold.
Ingredients: 6 pcs Maria biscuits (or plain rich tea biscuits) · 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Before you start
With meringue
Whisk the leftover whites to stiff peaks with 2 tablespoons of sugar and spoon them onto the custard as “clouds”, as in islas flotantes. Do not serve raw meringue to children, pregnant women or the elderly — to be safe, poach the spoonfuls for about a minute on each side in hot, not boiling, milk.
Thickness
Natillas should be thick but pourable, like custard loosened with milk. For a thicker, pudding-like cream, increase the cornflour to 50 g.
Storage
Keep yolk custard in the fridge for no more than 3 days, covered. Do not freeze — it separates on thawing.
