Milk Tart or Desperation Pie: Which came first?
An American dessert that bears a strikingly similar resemblance (and ingredients) to Milk Tart has locals up in arms. But which came first, the Milk Tart or Desperation Pie?
A video of Thabo Baloyi speaking about ‘Desperation Pie’ has South Africans clutching their pearls.
Baloyi was baffled at the US dessert that holds a stark resemblance to the South Africa Milk Tart.
We know that South Africans are the champions of roasting, boasting, and passionately defending everything SA-related.
So, when Baloyi took to TikTok, pointing fingers at Americans for allegedly swiping our Milk Tart, you can imagine the reaction.
The outrage started after Martha Stewart shared a recipe that looked suspiciously like our cherished Milk Tart.
In his post, Thabo lamented, “We’ve gladly given away Elon Musk, Charlize Theron, and even nearly Nelson Mandela’s hearing aid… but it’s never enough for some people”.
The method and look of the dessert were far too similar to our beloved Milk Tart.
Let’s take a look at the details:
@thabo_baloyi_ The Americans have stolen our milk tart… #SouthAfrica #SouthAfricans #Milktart ♬ original sound - Thabo Baloyi
Here's what South Africans had to say:
blametheghost16 said:
"Desperation pie.... what does that even mean... like yea I'm always desperate vir n lekker melktert, but what?"
Yorric Bengtson commented:
"Milk tart is literally OLDER than America."c
Nick Swanepoel wrote:
"Nooo! Not the milk tart, please keep the koeksisters safe."
Desperation Pie
According to The History Bandits, desperation pies came about in the late 18th century. However, they became prominent in households during the Great Depression and World War II.
@marthastewartliving The official state pie of Indiana, sugar cream is a regional specialty. It has a rich vanilla custard filling inside a buttery pastry crust. Get the recipe at the link in our bio. #marthastewart #pie #recipe #dessert ♬ original sound - Martha Stewart
Milk Tart
A report by IOL revealed that the dessert was made by Dutch settlers for the first time in the early 1600s. The origins were credited to a recipe in a book by Thomas van der Noot.
@drizzleanddip This is my best-ever South African unbaked milk tart recipe. Melted Kerrygold butter blends with crushed-up Tennis biscuits to make the base. The filling is an easy stove-top custard with condensed milk, milk and vanilla. You whisk the custard until it thickens then pour it into the tennis biscuit base. The tart sets for a few hours in the fridge before being dusted liberally with cinnamon to give the milk tart its signature flavour. It has a perfect wobble and is SO delicious. You will find the full recipe for this milk tart on my website linked in my b y o. #dessert #milktart #recipe ♬ Time for Miracle - MooveKa
It seems that the milk tart has been around a bit longer but who says we can’t share the limelight?
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Image courtesy of iStock