RECIPE: Recipe: Canadian Butter Tarts

RECIPE:
O

olga_d_ont

Well-known member
CANADIAN BUTTER TARTS

Some claim butter tarts to be the only true Canadian dish, although others imply that they have a Scottish heritage. Although these tarts are as rich and gooey as they should be, they’re a little less sweet than most.

PASTRY:

5 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 cups lard, cold

1 egg

2 Tbsp. vinegar

Ice water

FILLING:

3 cups brown sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, melted

2 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs

3/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs

1 cup cream

1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 400 F.

To prepare the pastry, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt.

Add half the lard to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, blend in until the pastry has the consistency of cornmeal. Add the remaining lard and blend until the pastry is the consistency of coarse breadcrumbs. Do not overwork the pastry.

Mix the egg with the vinegar in a 1 cup measuring cup. Fill the cup with ice cold water. Drizzle the mixture (egg, vinegar and ice water) over the flour mixture and stir lightly until the dough is evenly moistened.

To prepare the filling, combine the brown sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs.

Soak the breadcrumbs in the cream and add to the sugar mixture.

Roll out the pastry and line the tart pans. Place a few raisins in each tart.

Fill each tart 3/4 full with the filling. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes 30 tarts.

Recipe from Dew Drop Inn, Virgil, Ontario

 
Breadcrumbs?! Does it make for a texture like tapioca?

My dentist says his favorite dish in the world is butter tarts (he's Canadian). I'd like to make these for him... sounds wonderful. How big are the tart pans supposed to be? I have some little molds - maybe 2 to 3 inches across, and wondered if that would work.

 
Huh! Never heard of breadcrumbs in them, and I've made my way

through a lot of butter tarts in my life.

Also, a splash of vinegar in the filling gives that (some would say essential) crunch to the surface of the filling.

 
REC: Butter tarts 1

Both these recipes are our favourites, and we make them equally. The filling in recipe 1 is a little firmer than the one in recipe 2.

This is my late mother-in-law's recipe, from an ancient, stained Purity cookbook.

Makes 12 tarts

2 eggs
2 cups brown sugar
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted
1-1/2 cups currants or chopped raisins
Pastry (homemade or storebought flaky, or frozen tart shells)

Preheat oven to 425.

Beat eggs until well blended. Beat in sugar and add vinegar and vanilla. Stir in the melted butter and currants. Line pastry tins (or muffin cups) with pastry and fill 1/2 to 2/3 full with butter mixture. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until filling is firm.

(The original recipe actually says bake at 450 for 10 minutes then 350 for 20 to 25, but we've found the above change is better.)

 
Re: REC: Butter tarts 2

This one is from The New Canadian Basics Cookbook. This filling is the popular runny kind (you'll want a plate and a fork) but not overly sweet.

Makes 12 tarts

1/4 cup raisins or pecan halves
12 unbaked 3-inch tart shells
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup or dark corn syrup
1 egg
1 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
Pinch salt

Preheat oven to 375.

Sprinkle raisins evenly in tart shells. Cream together butter and brown sugar; beat in syrup, egg, vinegar, vanilla and salt. Pour into shells, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool in pans for a few minutes, then remove to rack and let cool completely.

 
Are they really that runny? I had no idea these things contained raisins.... guess I never had one!

 
If you don't like runny you can simply bake them longer, but

many people love the way the filling runs down their arms, sorta that fresh-tomato-sandwich thing I guess. You don't really want a firm filling like a pecan pie.

 
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