Pecan tarts

1
For the pastry:

Use your favourite recipe for butter crust. I always use the recipe from The Joy of Cooking

1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 tablespoons (or more) ice water

PreparationBlend flour, sugar, and salt in processor. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns, until coarse meal forms. Add 3 tablespoons water. Using on/off turns, blend just until moist clumps form, adding more water by 1/2 tablespoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic; refrigerate 1 hour. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled. Soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.)



Refrigerate the dough while you prepare the filling.

For the filling:

2 eggs, beaten
1-1/4 cups light brown sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup
2 tsp. vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup butter, melted
walnut halves (24 to 36)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place a walnut half in each prepared pastry-lined muffin cup.
In a bowl, whisk together all the other ingredients.
Carefully pour the mixture into each muffin cup, being careful not to fill them more than three-quarters of the way to the top (if you fill them more than that they may overflow).
Put the muffin tin on a baking tray just in case there are spills.
Bake the tarts in the centre of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Keep an eye on them to ensure that the crusts don't burn. The crusts should be golden and the filling should be just set.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
Enjoy!
Note: This recipe will yield enough filling for 24 butter tarts. If you make a butter crust recipe that yields two 9-inch pie shells, then you should have enough dough to fill the 24 muffin tins. If not, make two batches of the butter crust.

I sometimes add raisins to my butter tarts. If you want to add raisins, soak about a 1/4 cup of raisins hot water and then divide among the muffin cups before you add the filling. You can also use cranberries or dried cherries for a special twist.