Prepare the pastry in the version with the lard clicking on this link,  HYPERLINK "http://www.tiraccontounaricetta.it/public/Shortcrust_Pastry.asp" http://www.tiraccontounaricetta.it/public/Shortcrust_Pastry.asp . Once prepared let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30-60 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the custard and let it cool.
After that time, form small balls about 5-6 cm in diameter, roll them with a rolling pin and cover the molds for pasticciotti previously greased with lard. Do not immediately cut the edges, add the cream inside. The pasticciotto must be full, so do not be stingy in putting the cream. Cover with another disc of short pastry so that it adheres well to the cream and avoiding any unnecessary formation of air bubbles. At the end close the edges and sprinkle the surface with beaten egg white, this will make the surface very shiny.
Bake in a preheated oven at 200° C for about 30 minutes. Once cooked let them cool a little and then serve, the pasticciotti should be eaten still warm (but not very hot).

The pasticciotto is the most famous dessert (and perhaps the most good) in Salento which is a region of southern Italy.
It is widespread throughout the area of Salento, all pasticceria sell them. It is customary to eat them for breakfast at the bar in place of the croissant and also at any time of the day. It is often called Pasticciotto Leccese, so that the city of Lecce has given the title of product De.Co. (Denominazione  Comunale). However, the Pasticciotto would be born in Galatina (in the province of Lecce).
It seems that the pasticciotto was born in 1745 in the city of Galatina in the pastry of the family Ascalone on the feast of St. Paul, the patron saint of the city as well as curator of tarantate. This pastry was in difficult times from the financial point of view, and Mr. Ascalone trying to invent some kind of dessert that could help the economy of his shop.
Between a dessert and the other, Mr. Ascalone used the leftover shortcrust pastry and cream which were both too few to be able to make a real dessert, so to use all fully decided to put them in a small copper pot and cook equally in the form of a small cake that he himself defined pasticcio (mess in english) due to the limited aesthetic result.
Once cooked, Mr. Ascalone donated this pasticcio to a passer-by who tasted it and he was ecstatic. The passerby asked the pastry chef to produce others, so the pasticceria Ascalone began to churn out more and more pasticciotti that first became famous in the neighboring areas and then throughout Italy, so as to be known as the Pasticciotti de lu Scalone . Even today this pasticceria is active and constantly churning out the pasticciotti that must always be warm in order to be fully enjoyed.


The original version of pasticciotto is the one with the custard, but there are several variations, such as the pasticciotto with orange, cake-pasticciotto (size much larger than the pasticciotto), pasticciotto with cream and sour cherries, pasticciotto Obama (with pasta chocolate pastry cream filling and chocolate), the pistacchiotto (with pistachio cream) and newest addition (which I must say I'm not just going crazy) pasticciotto electronic, that is a fake pasticciotto made of rubber with a spray with the scent and the fragrance of pasticciotto ... I leave you comments on this strange evolution .. I still prefer the one that we eat.
Pasticciotto is a derivative of the fruttone, but this other dessert from Salento we dedicate a whole recipe for it.

Each mini-pasticciotto
Energy: 187.15 Kcal
Total Dietary Fiber: 0.52 g
Alcohol: 0.00 g
Water: 19.43 g
Total Protein: 3.59 g
Animal protein: 1.41 g
Vegetable protein: 2.18 g
Total lipids: 7.79 g
Lipids animals: 7,65 g
Plant lipids: 0.14 g
Cholesterol: 74.61 mg
Available carbohydrates: 27.37 g
Starch: 15.04 g
Sugars: 12.32 g