12/12/2025
Traditional Gypsy Tart 🍯🥧
A true Kentish classic, the Gypsy Tart is a sweet, silky dessert made with just a few humble ingredients. With its buttery pastry case and creamy, caramel-like filling, it’s a nostalgic pudding that generations remember fondly.
Ingredients
For the pastry:
🌾 1 ¼ cups plain flour
🧈 ½ cup unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
🍚 2 tbsp caster sugar
🥛 2–3 tbsp cold water
For the filling:
🥛 1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk, well chilled
🍬 1 ¼ cups light muscovado sugar (or soft brown sugar)
Method
🔥 Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease and line a 9-inch tart tin.
🌾 To make the pastry, rub butter into flour and sugar until breadcrumb-like. Add cold water a spoonful at a time until the dough comes together. Wrap and chill for 20 minutes.
🥧 Roll out pastry and line the tart tin. Prick the base with a fork, then line with parchment and baking beans. Bake blind for 15 minutes. Remove beans and parchment, and bake for a further 5 minutes until golden. Leave to cool slightly.
🥛 In a large bowl, whisk chilled evaporated milk until frothy and thickened (about 5 minutes with an electric whisk).
🍬 Gradually whisk in the muscovado sugar until fully incorporated and the mixture is light and fluffy.
🥧 Pour filling into the cooled pastry case and bake for 10 minutes only – no longer, or it will set too hard.
❄️ Allow to cool completely in the tin. The tart should have a soft, mousse-like filling. Dust with icing sugar if desired.
Serving Information
⏱️ Prep time: 25 minutes
🔥 Baking time: 30 minutes
⌛ Total time: 55 minutes
🍽️ Serves: 8 slices
⚡ Calories: ~320 per slice
Tips
✨ The evaporated milk must be very cold for the filling to whip properly – chill it overnight.
✨ Store in the fridge and eat within 2 days.
✨ For a twist, try using dark muscovado sugar for a deeper, treacly flavour.
