Kentish Pudding Pies
Delicate shortcrust tartlets filled with a creamy, nutmeg-spiced ground rice custard and plump currants. A traditional Kentish spring teatime treat.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Total
- 50 min
- Servings
- 6
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 310 kcal
Equipment
- •12-hole tart tin
- •Saucepan
- •Rolling pin
- •Round pastry cutter
- •Wire cooling rack
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 310 kcal
- fat
- 15 g
- carbs
- 39 g
- fibre
- 1 g
- protein
- 6 g
- calories
- 310 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Rub the chilled butter into the plain flour in a mixing bowl until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.
- 2
Stir in cold water gradually and bring the dough together with your hands into a firm ball.
- 3
Wrap the pastry in greaseproof paper and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- 4
Whisk the milk and ground rice together in a saucepan on the hob over medium heat.
- 5
Simmer the mixture gently for 5 minutes, stirring continuously until thickened, then take off the heat to cool slightly.
- 6
Whisk the caster sugar, beaten egg, lemon zest, and half the ground nutmeg into the warm rice custard.
- 7
Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured work surface to 3mm thickness.
- 8
Cut rounds with a pastry cutter and press them into a 12-hole tart tin.
- 9
Scatter the dried currants evenly into the base of each raw pastry case.
- 10
Ladle the warm rice custard over the currants and dust the tops with remaining nutmeg.
- 11
Bake at 180°C fan (200°C / Gas 6) for 20 minutes until the pastry is golden and custard is just set.
Chef's tips
Use ground rice rather than fine rice flour to ensure the authentic, slightly granular texture characteristic of Kentish puddings. Allow the cooked rice mixture to cool for five minutes before beating in the egg to avoid curdling.
Ingredient substitutions
- ground rice → semolina
- dried currants → sultanas
Storage
Store baked tartlets in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating
Warm gently in a fan oven at 160°C for 5 to 7 minutes to refresh the pastry.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Using fine rice flour instead of ground rice, which makes the filling pasty rather than pleasantly grainy.
- •Adding the egg to boiling milk mixture, which will scramble the custard.
- •Overbaking until the custard cracks and shrinks from the pastry.
Serving suggestions
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