Natillas, Spanish custard

2 from 1 vote

Natillas is a lovely creamy, gently sweet and cinnamon-dusted dessert.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

chilling time (approximately)1

Total Time20

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Spanish

Servings: or less if larger

Calories: 244kcal

Author: Caroline

Gently warm the milk with the pieces of lemon peel and the cinnamon stick over a medium-low heat in a small to medium saucepan to infuse it. The mixture should become fairly warm but not boiling (small bubbles around the edge are fine).
Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in small bowl until it becomes paler and glossy. Add the corn starch (corn flour) and mix in well to a smooth paste.
Let the milk cool and infuse a minute or two, then remove the lemon peel and cinnamon stick from the milk. Temper the egg mixture by adding a little of the warm milk to the egg mixture, whisking as you go to ensure you don't get scrambled egg lumps. Add a little more, mixing as you do so, then transfer the milk-egg mixture back to the pan with the rest of the milk. Stir to mix.
Put the pan back on a low heat and warm, stirring gently but constantly until it is thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon/spatula. This will take a few minutes. Remove from the heat.
Pour into individual ramekins (or custard dishes/glasses), let cool then refrigerate at least 1 hour, or longer is also fine. I'd recommend covering with cling wrap against the surface to avoid it forming a skin and taking in any smells from the fridge, though it's not strictly needed.
When ready to serve, dust with a little ground cinnamon and serve chilled.

Note if you have any lumps in the the mixture, you can strain it through a fine sieve as you pour into the ramekins/dishes.

If you want to make a larger quantity, multiply everything up apart from the cinnamon stick - just one is still fine with double the recipe.

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