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Señoritas
Custard slices in puff pastry
Cuban custard slices between crisp puff pastry with a sugar glaze
Señoritas are a fixture of Cuban bakeries in Havana and Santiago, and of the Cuban-run ventanitas in Miami: two sheets of crisp, flattened puff pastry sandwiching a thick vanilla-and-lemon custard, with a shiny white sugar glaze on top. They are Cuba's cousin of the mille-feuille, eaten mid-morning or after lunch with a tiny cup of sweet café cubano, and they are always in the box for a birthday or a baptism. Adding the custard while it is still warm is where it goes wrong: the pastry goes limp within an hour. Chef's tip: bake the pastry under a second baking tray so it stays flat, thin and evenly crisp, which makes clean cutting far easier.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 1 ⅜ lb all-butter puff pastry sheetstwo 320 g sheets
For the custard
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 lemon peela wide strip
- 3 ½ oz caster sugar
- 1 ⅜ oz cornflour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ oz butter
For the glaze
- 5 ½ oz icing sugar
- 2 tbsp hot waterabout
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Heat 2 cups whole milk with 1 lemon peel and 1 cinnamon stick until steaming, then turn off the heat and leave for 10 minutes to infuse. Remove the peel and cinnamon.
10 minStep 2: Whisk 4 egg yolks, 3 ½ oz caster sugar and 1 ⅜ oz cornflour in a bowl. Pour in the warm milk, whisking, then return it all to the pan.
Step 3: Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it thickens and bubbles, then cook for 1 minute more. Stir in 1 tsp vanilla extract and ½ oz butter, press cling film onto the surface and chill until completely cold.
5 minStep 4: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan). Lay each sheet of 1 ⅜ lb all-butter puff pastry sheets on a lined tray, prick all over with a fork, cover with baking paper and put another baking tray on top.
Step 5: Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the top tray and paper and bake for 5–8 minutes more, until deep golden and crisp all the way through. Cool on racks.
22 minStep 6: Trim both sheets to the same neat rectangle. Beat the cold custard until smooth and spread it evenly over one sheet, about 1.5 cm thick. Lay the second sheet on top, smooth side up, and press gently.
Step 7: Mix 5 ½ oz icing sugar with 2 tbsp hot water to a thick, spreadable glaze and smooth it over the top. Chill for 30 minutes to set.
30 minStep 8: Cut into 12 rectangles with a sharp serrated knife, sawing through the top layer before pressing down. Eat the same day.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 39 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does señoritas take?
- About 90 minutes in total: 60 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
- What can I use instead of cinnamon stick?
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon per stick.
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