These miniature pies are delectable little bites, perfect for that “I just want a bite of something sweet” craving at the end of a meal or an afternoon coffee break. The simple crust supports any filling you can think of; Fruit fillings like apple, cherry, or blueberry, a lemon or citrus curd and meringue, pumpkin pie filling, or even a savory quiche filling would work. You can be as creative as you want to be with this little pastry.
We’ve served various versions of these at our yearly Kentucky Derby parties, holiday parties, picnics, afternoon meetings, and given them as gifts-but always keeping a few for ourselves. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Mini Pecan Dessert Tarts
These miniature pies welcome any of your favorite fillings to make the perfect bite-sized indulgence for dessert, coffee, or tea.
Equipment
- Mini Muffin Pan
Ingredients
Crust
- 1/2 Cup Butter
- 3 Ounces Cream Cheese
- 1 Cup Flour All-Purpose
Filling for Pecan Tarts – *See Notes°
- 1 Egg
- 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
- 1 Teaspoon Butter Softens
- Pinch of Salt
- 1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans
- 30 Pecan Halves to top the tarts. 25-30 will be needed, depending upon what the recipe yields.
Instructions
- Pre-Heat Oven to 325°F
Crust
- Mix the Butter, Cream Cheese, and Flour until well combined. Set aside.
Filling for Pecan Tarts
- Mix together the Egg, Brown Sugar, Vanilla, Butter, and Salt until well combined.
Assemble
- Using a Tablespoon amount of dough at a time, form the dough into small round balls and individually press the dough into each of the mini muffin tins.
- Evenly distribute the Chopped Pecans between each of the formed tart shells.
- Fill each tart shell with the egg & sugar Filling mixture, about 1 teaspoon each.
- Bake at 325°F for 25-30 minutes, until the filling is set. Watch the crust so that it doesn’t get too dark. It should appear to have a golden color, just like you like your favorite pie crusts. The Pecan Tarts freeze well, and will keep up to 6 months in the freezer.
Notes
1. These are very versatile tarts that can be filled with any of your favorite pie fillings: fruit fillings like cherry, blueberry, or apple, as well as lemon curd, or your favorite pumpkin pie filling.
2. If using a curd:
- the tart crusts need to be blind-baked similar to a regular pie. You can prick the dough in a few places with the point of a knife to keep the dough from puffing too much while it’s baking. If they puff up a little, you can press them down with your fingers. (Alternatively, you could cut small strips of parchment paper and criss-cross them in the tart shell and fill them with a few pie weights or baking beans.)
- After the crusts have baked, let them cool in the pan, then remove them and place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, then fill them with your curd.
- If adding meringue, follow the steps above for the curd-filled tarts. With the tarts removed from the muffin tin and placed on the parchment-lined sheet pan, Fill them with your desired filling and then top them with meringue.
- Bake them in a 400 degree oven for 5-7 minutes, until golden brown.
- If you don’t have a Meringue or Curd recipe, you can go to our Lemon Meringue Tartlet recipe. If you double that recipe, you will have enough filling and meringue for all of the mini tarts in this recipe.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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