Old-Fashioned Butter Tarts

Trust us when we say that there’s nothing quite like grabbing a still-warm butter tart and taking that first bite.

Ingredients & Amounts

For the tart pastry:
2¼ cups of cake and pastry flour
½ teaspoon of kosher salt
1 tablespoon of golden yellow sugar
½ cup of butter, cold
½ cup of vegetable shortening, cold
1 egg, room temperature
1 tablespoon of white vinegar
6-8 tablespoons of cold water
extra flour for rolling the pastry

For the filling:
¾ cup of dark brown sugar
¼ cup of corn syrup
¼ cup of butter, melted
2 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon of kosher salt

Optional:
½ cup of dried currants
½ cup of pecans, chopped

Instructions

1. Prepare the butter tart pastry: In a medium-sized stainless steel bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt. Cube the butter and shortening and drop into the flour mixture. Toss lightly. Rub the butter and shortening into the mixture until it forms small pea-sized crumbs.

2. Whisk egg and vinegar together in measuring cup. Add cold water until mix measures ½ cup and whisk again. Sprinkle 6 tablespoons of liquid onto the flour mixture and combine using a fork, forming larger clumps. Work dough briefly and gently by hand until it forms a ball. If the dough feels dry and fails to hold together, add a bit more liquid, one tablespoon at a time. Transfer onto a sheet of plastic wrap, seal and refrigerate for at least one hour before use.

3. Prepare the filling: Melt the butter. Place the sugar and corn syrup into a bowl and add the butter. Stir these ingredients together. Add the remaining ingredients and mix together using a hand mixer on low speed until all of the sugar dissolves. Transfer the filling mixture to a measuring cup until use.

4. Create the shells: On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a ¼-inch thickness. Cut out 4½-inch circles using a cookie cutter, glass, cup or bowl. Transfer the rounds of dough to a large, 12-cup muffin pan, pushing them down into each well. Gather the remaining dough, roll it out and repeat until it has all been used. Transfer muffin pan to refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes.

5. Prepare the butter tarts: Preheat the oven to 425°F. If preparing the butter tarts with currants and/or nuts, add 1 teaspoon of each into the centre of each pastry-lined cup. Pour tart filling into each cup, ½ full if plain, ¾ full if made with add-ins. Transfer to oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until pastry is golden and centres no longer jiggle and seem firm.

6. Cool tarts in pan for about 15 minutes before removing. Enjoy!

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