HELLO! Ok, it has seriously been a while. This blog began as a way for me to access and share recipes that I’ve tried, and somewhere along the line, it started to feel like a chore. This New Year’s, I realized I was ready to come back, SO! I decided to make my New Year’s Resolution…. to post at least once a month… It is definitely January 31st, 2017, but I’m here!
The recipe I’m sharing today is something that is ALWAYS a hit. Potlucks, Parties, Cookie Tins at Christmas…. They even sold these two for five dollars during a bake sale at work (I didn’t even think they were worth that much). I’ll admit, they’re not my favorite (more of a cake girl myself), but these are definitely a go to for me if I’m not sure what to bring anywhere (especially when cake has already been taken).
My oldest sister loves her some Pecans, and she is the one that had me bake these the first time. Pecan Tarts are pretty much bite size Pecan Pies. Super sweet, flaky crust, with nutty notes from the pecans. I started with this recipe from All Recipes, but made a few tweaks.
What You’ll Need:
- 1 Cup of Butter (two sticks), Softened
- 6 oz Cream Cheese, Softened
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 4 Eggs
- 3 Cups Brown Sugar, Packed
- 4 TBSP Butter, Melted
- 1 Pinch Salt
- 1 TSP Vanilla Extract
- 48 Pecans, Whole
Making the Dough:
Cream the softened butter and the softened cream cheese. Add flour and mix with your hands, or a pastry blender, or if you feel like using it even though its a little over-kill, go ahead and pull our your trusty mixer. Put it in some plastic wrap and chill it in the fridge while you make the filling.
Note: I’ve tried making it with 8 oz instead of 6 oz and it still turns out alright. It’s just a little more sticky prior to baking and turns a little darker shade when you bake it.
Making the Filling:
Break the eggs into a medium sized bowl and add the sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla. Mix Well. Yes, it looks pretty gross and gloopy, but it’ll end up being more of a gooey fudge sauce texture once it bakes.
Assembly:
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Spray your mini tart/cupcake pans with cooking spray.
Remove the dough from the fridge and make into 48 balls. You’re going to place one ball into a the cavity in the tin and press it into the tart shell. I usually press my thumb into the middle of the ball so it goes halfway through the ball, then use my pointer and middle fingers to press the edges to the sides. Make sure to go up to the top of the tin, otherwise, it will be more difficult to get out.
TIP: Trim your nails before making these. It’ll be much easier to get an even shell AND you won’t have to worry about getting dough under your nails! Speaking from experience here!
Note: Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to just pull off some dough piece by piece. I usually estimate each one at a time and if I need more dough, I’ll just add an extra pinch of dough where needed. I usually still get 48 tarts ± 2. If you added in 8 oz instead of 6 oz of cream cheese, you’ll definitely have extra dough left over.
Once you’ve pressed all the dough into the tins, fill the tarts 3/4 way full. Otherwise, the filling will spill over the tart shells onto the pan and maybe the bottom of your oven. I find that filling a cookie scooper a little less than full does the job well. Once the filling has been.. filled. Place one pecan on top of each.
Note: The tarts in picture are just the right amount of full. Some were a tad too full. DO NOT fill any more or you will get some kind of spillage.
Bake for around 30 minutes or until the edges of the tart are slightly brown.
Note: The original recipe calls for one cup of chopped pecans, but putting one pecan on top looks very pretty. If you’re my sister, you’ll put in the cup of chopped pecans into the batter AND put an extra pecan on top.
Enjoy!
- 1 Cup of Butter (two sticks), Softened
- 6 oz Cream Cheese, Softened
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 4 Eggs
- 3 Cups Brown Sugar, Packed
- 4 TBSP Butter, Melted
- 1 Pinch Salt
- 1 TSP Vanilla Extract
- 48 Pecans, Whole
- Cream softened butter and cream cheese.
- Add in the flour and mix until incorporated.
- Set in fridge to chill.
- Break the eggs into a medium sized bowl and add the sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla.
- Mix Well.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Spray your mini tart/cupcake pans with cooking spray.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and make into 48 balls.
- Press each ball into a cavity in the tin.
- Fill each tart shell 3/4 full of the sugar mixture.
- Place one pecan on top of each tart shell.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
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