Pecan Tassie

Pecan Tassie

This treats is one of my favorites. I will occasionally have a night out with my friend Sarah at her family's cabin. We catch up, cook tin foil dinners and have a drink or two. We enjoy desserts for the occasion. Sarah brought this as the dessert one night and I pretty much ate them all. I love them and a batch makes about 45 small pecan pies. You can give them out to friends and family, freeze and save them and they will be just as delicious as if they were pulled from the oven.  They're basically mini pecan pies. One of the reasons that makes them so awesome is the cream cheese baked into the crust and the contrast it gives with the sweet pecan filing. If you enjoy pecan pie you will love this!

Ingredients: (pastry crust)

1 cup of unsalted butter. (you can use salted, whatever is preferred).

6 oz of regular cream cheese at room temperature.

2 cups of all purpose flour.

Pecan Filling:

3 large eggs 

3 tablespoons of unsalted butter melted

1 3/4 cups of light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup of coarsely pecans.

 Instruction: (pastry crust)

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer or hand held. Cream until fluffy and light. Beat in flour until incorporated. Flatten the dough into 1 inch thick discs and wrap in wax paper or plastic and refrigerate for about 45 minutes to an hour allowing the dough to cool, making it easier to work with. 

Preheat the oven to 375 and place the oven rack in the center. Have two 24 mini muffins dishes, they also come in 12. 

Remove the pastry dough from the fridge, pinch off 1/4 of the dough. Return the rest of the dough to the fridge. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry until 1/8  inch thick. Cut rounds that are slightly bigger than the muffins tins. You can also take small balls of rolled dough and press them in with your thumb, minding the thickness of the dough and how much it rises out of the top. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Instruction: (Pecan filling)

With your preferred mixer, beat the eggs, butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt until it's smooth and syrupy. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling into each muffin tin. Make sure to not over fill (about a quarter inch from the top of the crust) because it will cause bubbling over onto the pan and cause your tarts to stick and will force them to crumble. Place the pecans onto the tarts without causing the filling to overflow out of the crust.  Bake in the oven for about 18 to 20 minutes or until nicely browned. place on a wire rack to cool and enjoy

  

Thanks for reading. Thank you Sarah. I will be posting more recipes soon. If anyone would like to share, please do! I am always looking for new delicious recipes!