Melktert
What is Melktert?
Melktert is a South-African “pie”. Its name means literally “milk
tart” or “milk pie.”
It is a pie with a crust and a bland custard as the filling, baked in a
round pie tin. After baking, it is often dusted with cinnamon. Some
versions don’t use a crust; but many people say that if there’s no
crust, it’s not a Melktert.
Some recipes have you add the eggs whole (though shelled of course);
others have you separate the eggs, beat the egg whites, and then added
the yolks and beaten egg white.
The traditional crust is a short-crust, but many people nowadays like to
use ready-made puff pastry dough from the store instead. Melktert
appears at just about every bake sale.
It’s so omnipresent in South Africa that some people are sick of it, but
they are afraid to say that out loud because you are sure to offend
someone. It is served in slices, chilled or room-temperature.