Time 45 min
Servings 8 tarts
Butter tarts are a Canadian classic and personal favorite. The first official butter tart recipe was published in 1900 in Barrie, ON (in the The Women's Auxiliary of the Royal Victoria Hospital Cookbook, to be precise). It’s a sweet treat that likely shares roots with treacle tarts from the UK, pecan pie from the States, and tarts au sucre, a pie made by French women in Quebec as early as the 1600s.
What You Need
DOUGH
1 pie crust of your choice, rolled out (feel free to use store-bought mini pie shells or pie dough, I won’t tell)
TART FILLING
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup corn syrup (or sub maple syrup)
1/4 cup of butter, melted and cooled
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp white vinegar (optional)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
heavy pinch salt
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT
whisk
muffin tin
How it’s done
1
GET READY
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2
PREP THE TART SHELLS
Grease a muffin tin, cut the pie dough into 3.5 inch rounds (depending on your muffin tin), and line the greased muffin cups with the dough rounds. Refrigerate your tart shells while you make the filling.
3
MAKE THE FILLING
Whisk together brown sugar, syrup, and butter. Add eggs, vinegar, vanilla, and salt and whisk again.
4
MAKE THE MAGIC HAPPEN
Gently ladle filling into tart shells and bake at 350 F for 22-25 minutes.
5
COOL AND ENJOY
Let cool for 10 minutes and enjoy!
I like my butter tarts less runny and with a hint of vinegar to balance out the sweet, but many people like just the opposite! For a runny tart, use 1/2 cup light brown sugar and 1/2 cup corn syrup and one less egg. You can also bake them a little less. And for a full-sweet experience, just skip that vinegar!
EXTRA NOTES
I like my butter tarts less runny and with a hint of vinegar to balance out the sweet, but many people like just the opposite! For a runny tart, use 1/2 cup light brown sugar and 1/2 cup corn syrup and one less egg. You can also bake them a little less. And for a full-sweet experience, just skip that vinegar!
Stay in the loop.
Get monthly-ish emails.