Simple Canadian Butter Tarts (2024)

FAQs

What are Canadian butter tarts made of? ›

Butter tarts are a quintessential Canadian dessert—and, oh, how I love them! These buttery mini pies, typically baked in a muffin tin, have a flaky crust filled with a gooey mixture of butter, sugar, syrup, egg, and sometimes raisins or nuts.

They are a humble treat, made with ordinary ingredients, and spectacularly delicious. “If you look at the ingredients, it's really what you have in your pantry when you have nothing else,” said Liz Driver, the author of “Culinary Landmarks: A Bibliography of Canadian Cookbooks, 1825–1949.”

Butter tarts that are runny may be underbaked or may not contain enough egg. Eggs help thicken and stabilize butter tart filling while it bakes, which is why I've included two whole eggs in my recipe to ensure the filling is thick and fully set once baked.

Corn syrup is a sweetener but it also adds moisture and helps keep cookies chewy. It helps them brown nicely too. If you don't mind the distinctive flavors you can substitute honey, agave, maple syrup, or molasses. You can also just add an extra couple of tablespoons of brown sugar.

Does America have butter tarts? Yes, any decent bakery will typically carry butter tarts, that quintessential Canadian pastry.

The much-debated question when it comes to butter tarts. Some people hate raisins and therefore don't like them in their tarts. Others find raisins too sweet with the sugary filling so prefer using currants for a more tart edge or chopped nuts such as pecans or walnuts.

Sylvain Charlebois, director of the lab, said the answer isn't so simple. For one, the price of butter is impacted by the federal Canadian Dairy Commission, which surveys farmers to assess the cost of producing butterfat and skim milk. It then informs provincial boards how much processors should pay.

According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, butter tarts are a result of the filles du roi, or the King's Daughters, who were young French women sent to Quebec in the 17th century.

From classic favourites like traditional butter, pecan, and raisin to unique variations like chocolate hazelnut, salted caramel, and coconut, there's a butter tart for every palate.

-- To avoid "gritty" butter tarts, caramelize sugar first by blending on the stovetop with butter, syrup and vanilla. Let it cool before adding eggs to the mixture or they'll be scrambled.

Can I use oil instead of butter in tarts? ›

The pastry of a tart made by using oil instead of butter will be richer and more flavoursome and will have that home-made taste that is so special, with aromas reminiscent of one's granny's comforting recipes.

Holes in the dough will cause the filling to seep under the pastry, causing the tarts to stick to the pan. Toasting Nuts: You don't have to toast nuts when making butter tarts; they toast as the tarts bake in the oven.

Sucrose naturally wants to crystalize, which is how granulated sugar is made from simple sugars like fructose and glucose. To reduce the amount of crystallization in the butter tart filling when baking, try adding some acidity (i.e. lemon juice or 1 spoon of corn syrup).

Karo syrup is a popular brand of corn syrup, which is obtained from corn starch that is derived from maize. It is a concentrated solution of several sugars, such as glucose (dextrose), derived from corn starch. Because of various sugars, corn syrup has a naturally mild sweet taste.

Honey has a similar consistency as corn syrup, but it tends to be a bit sweeter. While it does make for a great swap in baked goods, it should not be used for candy making. Use a 1:1 swap for corn syrup, but do keep in mind that honey may impart a distinct flavor when using it as an alternative.

Also known as churned butter, this is the traditional butter, which is made by churning pasteurized cream and then salted.

What is the filling in a fruit tart? Fruit tarts are generally filled with pastry cream made from milk, eggs, vanilla, sugar corn starch, and butter.

Ingredients for a Tart Shell

Butter – use softened, unsalted butter so you can control the salt. Sugar – granulated sugar adds sweetness to the crust. Salt – use fine sea salt to balance the sweetness. Egg yolk – creates a tender dough.

With a gooey, just-set filling made with butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and eggs, butter tarts are hard not to love. They have comforting notes of caramel and butterscotch and are perfect when you want something small and sweet.