Nastar Gulung (Rolled Pineapple Tarts)
Nastar Gulung or Rolled Pineapple Tarts are rich and buttery pastry crust filled with pineapple jam. They are a must-have for festive occasions.
Nastar or pineapple tart is a must-have during the holiday season. It is a small bite-size tart filled or topped with pineapple jam. The pastry is made of buttery, melt-in-your-mouth crust that is filled with a sweet pineapple filling.
The tarts are then shaped into small balls or various shapes, brushed with egg wash on top, and baked until golden brown. The most common variant is the ones with pineapple jam fully enclosed in the crust like in my Nastar recipe. There are also other variants, some are “open” and there is also this Nastar Gulung with the jam only partly enclosed in the pastry.
Its buttery crust and sweet pineapple filling make it an irresistible treat for all. It is a perfect homemade gift to give to loved ones during the holiday season, or just as a treat for yourself.
Special Tool You Need
To make Nastar Gulung, you will need a special extruder mold. Add a little dough into the mold and pipe the dough pastry into long strips. Place the pineapple jam on one end of the piped dough and roll the dough to wrap the filling. When the jam is fully wrapped, cut off the excess and make sure to seal it by lightly pressing the ends of the dough together. Place the seam side down on the prepared baking sheet.
Ingredients You Need
Pastry Dough
- Butter – You can use unsalted or salted butter. If you use salted butter, just omit the salt in the recipe.
- Confectioners’ sugar – Confectioners’ sugar is used to get a softer texture and delicate melt-in-your-mouth cookies.
- Egg yolk – The egg yolk contains fat that helps add richness and tenderness to the cookies.
- Vanilla extract – To enhance the flavor.
- Cake flour – Cake flour has a lower protein content and makes a more tender pastry.
- Cornstarch – It makes the pastry more tender and crumbly.
- Milk powder –It adds flavor and tenderness to the pastry.
- Salt – Omit the salt if using salted butter.
Pineapple Jam Filling
- Fresh pineapples – Grate the pineapples for a fibrous texture or blend the pineapples with a blender for a more smooth texture.
- Granulated sugar – To sweeten and caramelize the jam.
- Salt – To enhance the sweetness.
- Spices – Cinnamon, cloves, and star anise are commonly used to infuse warmth and flavor. In this recipe, only cloves are used but you can add cinnamon and star anise if preferred.
Egg Wash
- Egg yolks – To give the top an appetizing golden brown color.
- Vegetable oil – A little bit of oil is added to make the egg wash slightly shiny. It will also prevent the egg wash from cracking during the baking.
Type of Butter to Use
Indonesians are very opinionated towards Wijsman Dutch canned butter. It is the most popular and expensive butter in Indonesia. Apparently, the product itself is hard to find in the Netherlands. Wijsman butter was created specifically for tropical countries and no refrigerators during the colonial time. In fact, this butter can be stored at room temperature.
The Wijsman butter has a higher fat content and a more savory taste with a sweeter aroma. That’s why the cookies made with this butter taste better and are more fragrant. You can also use regular butter, but you can still tell the difference.
Make The Filling Ahead of Time
Make homemade pineapple jam from fresh pineapples because it tastes so much better than store-bought ones. You will need to make the pineapple jam filling at least a day before because it can take hours to reduce the grated pineapples and let the jam cool. When you have your jam ready, you can proceed to make these melt-in-the-mouth cookies.
How to Make Nastar Gulung
- Portion the pineapple jam 1 tsp or 7-8 grams each. Roll them into 1-inch/2.5 cm long cylinders with your hands.
- Make the pastry dough. Mix unsalted butter and confectioners’ sugar just until well combined. Add egg yolk and vanilla extract. Mix until combined. Sift in cake flour, cornstarch, milk powder, and salt. Mix just until combined.
- Place a small piece of dough into a Nastar mold. Press into a long strip with the pattern side down.
- Place the pineapple jam on one end of the piped dough and roll the dough to wrap the filling. When the jam is fully wrapped, cut off the excess and make sure to seal it by lightly pressing the ends of the dough together.
- Place the seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Bake at 300F/150°C for 17-20 minutes.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the pan for about 5-10 minutes. While waiting, strain egg yolks into a small bowl. Add a little bit of vegetable oil and mix.
- Brush the top of the cookies with the egg wash twice.
- Bake at 300F/150°C for 10-15 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Pro Tips
- Use weight measurement – Measuring by weight is recommended for accuracy.
- Cook the pineapple jam long enough – If you make the pineapple jam from scratch, try to cook it until dry but moist and sticky, thick in consistency, and golden brown. If you undercook the jam, it will be runny and cause the pastry dough to crack when baked.
- Do not cream the butter and sugar – Just mix the butter and sugar until well combined. If you cream them until pale white and fluffy, the pastry dough will expand when baked.
- Use low-temperature baking temperature – The most common cause for cracked Nastar is a too-high oven temperature, which will cause the top of the cookies to dry out before the inside is set. As the cookies expand, the dry surface starts to crack.
- Bake the cookies until fully cooked before applying the egg wash – We bake the cookies twice in this recipe. The first bake is to fully cook the pastry dough before applying the egg wash. If the dough is still underbaked during the first bake, it will cause the pastry to expand on the second bake and cause cracking on the egg wash.
- Cool the cookies slightly before brushing them with egg wash – Let the pastry dough cool and firm up first before brushing it with egg wash.
How to Store
Let Nastar Gulung cool completely. Transfer the cookies to an airtight container and add silica gel to absorb the moisture. If they are stored properly in a sealed airtight container, they will last for up to 3 weeks at room temperature. Once opened, consume the cookies within 1 week.
Nastar Gulung (Pineapple Tart Rolls)
Ingredients
Pastry Dough
- 1/2 cup (113 gr) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (35 gr) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 cups (160 gr) cake flour
- 2 tbsp (15 gr) cornstarch
- 2 tbsp (15 gr) milk powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Pineapple Filling
- 18 oz (510 gr) pineapple jam
Egg Wash
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Instructions
Pineapple Filling
- Portion the pineapple jam 1 tsp or 7-8 grams each.
- Roll them into 1-inch/2.5 cm long cylinders with your hands. Set aside.
Pastry Dough
- Mix the wet ingredients – In a large bowl, add butter and confectioners' sugar. Mix with a spatula or mixer just until combined. Add egg yolk and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients – Sift cake flour, cornstarch, milk powder, and salt into the wet ingredients. Mix until well incorporated.
Assemble
- Preheat oven to 300F/150°C and line two baking pans with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Press the dough into strips – Place a small piece of dough into a Nastar mold. Press into a long strip with the pattern side down.
- Encase the filling – Place one pineapple filling on the one end of the dough strip. Roll up the dough just enough to enclose the filling. Cut off the excess strip. Lightly press the ends of the dough together. Place the rolled pineapple tarts on the prepared baking sheets with the seam side down. Continue with the remaining dough and filling.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes.
- Cool slightly – Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the pan for about 5-10 minutes.
Egg Wash
- Make egg wash – While waiting for the cookies to cool, strain egg yolks into a small bowl to remove any lumps. Add a little bit of vegetable oil and mix until combined.
- Brush the top of the cookies with the egg wash. Let the egg wash dry for about 10 minutes before brushing them again with the second coat of egg wash.
- Bake at 300F/150°C for 10-15 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
- Cool – Transfer nastar gulung to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store the cooled cookies in an airtight container.
