Canadian Butter Tarts

I have been seeing these a lot lately on Canadian food blogs and they looked so delicious and simple to make, I knew I was in trouble!

I had never heard of the "Canadian Butter Tart" before. But I am now a fan.

I hid them in the garage so I would forget they were in the house.
They are sort of like that "crack pie" from Momofuku Milk Bar in NYC that everyone raves about.

These were scary good.

I liked Kevin's recipe, as well as Julie's Grandmother's, so I combined the two.

You can either use maple syrup or corn syrup. I used corn syrup.
Nuts are optional. Pecans or walnuts, I chose walnuts.
Raisins or currants, I chose currants.

Julie's grandmother's short crust pastry with vinegar was fantastic, but you can use your recipe for pate brisee or pie crust.

Scary Canadian Butter Tarts (scary because they are so good, I could eat 10 in one sitting!):

Pastry for a single crust pie

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup or maple syrup
1 egg
2 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp. vanilla
a handful of currants or raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 400°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry out 1/4″ thick. Cut out circles using a 4″ cookie cutter, and press into ungreased muffin cups.
(I used mini muffin tins).



In a medium bowl, stir together the brown sugar, corn syrup, egg, butter and vanilla. Stir in the currants and nuts, if you’re using them.

Fill the tart shells about 2/3 full and bake for 20-25 minutes, until bubbly and golden.



You will want to remove them from the pan using a thin knife or spoon to coax them out while they are still warm, otherwise any stuff that has bubbled over will stick to the pan as it cools.

If it does, pop them back in the oven for a minute to soften it again. Cool on a wire rack.

Makes about 18 butter tarts.



Oh Canada!