JESUÍTAS

I'm from the land of the Jesuítas (which means Jesuits), in Santo Tirso, Portugal, and I couldn't help but bake these treats. But since I don't specially like to eat them simple (just the puff pastry and the sugar topping) I added custard as a filling and I must say it is a must from now on.

For those who don't know, the Jesuítas change their name according to their size. The miniatures are called Seminaristas (Seminarists) and the bigger version is called Bispo (Bishop). There's also an even bigger and absurd version which is called Cardeal (Cardinal). In this particular case I decided to make Seminaristas so I could get more quantity with this recipe.

Let's get things going now.

NOTE: the original recipe does not contain custard or any other filling.

What you'll need:

Pastry:
- 4 packs of rectangular/square puff pastry

Topping:
- 180g demerara sugar (açucar amarelo in Portugal)
- 1 egg white

Custard:
- 300ml milk
- 60g flour
- 1 egg and 3 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Roughly whisk the egg whites and sugar until they combine and set aside. 

Combine all the custard ingredients in a non-stick pan and bring it to a gentle simmer. Let it simmer until the cream thickens and you have the desired consistency. Keep mixing it during the whole process so it doesn't burn or stick to the pan. Set aside.

Lay down the puff pastry sheets and spread the custard on top of two of them. Put the other two sheets on top of the custard ones, just like making two sandwiches. On top of those two, spread the sugar and egg white mixture, spreading it until it reaches all the edges. With a sharpened knife, cut either triangles or small rectangles (originally they are shaped like triangles). Bake in the oven for 15 minutes at 180ºC. Make several batches so you don't overcrowd the oven.

Enjoy the result and impress your friends.