Classic Canadian Butter Tarts with Raisins

Classic Canadian butter tarts stacked on a white plate, with more tarts on a wire cooling rack.

5 from 1 vote

Classic Canadian Butter Tarts with Raisins

Traditional Canadian butter tarts with a rich brown sugar filling and flaky pastry shells - no corn syrup needed! These classic Canadian treats are perfect for holiday baking!

Prep Time12

Cook Time18

Total Time30

Course: All Recipes, Dessert

Cuisine: Canadian

Servings: servings

Calories: 178kcal

Author: Jeri Walker

Ingredients

18 frozen tart shells, unsweetened (or homemade pie dough)
1 cup brown sugar packed
⅓ cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons heavy cream or half-and-half or milk
1 large egg room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup raisins

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F and set rack to middle position. Arrange frozen tart shells on n aluminum foil or parchment-lined baking sheet, keeping them in their foil tins.
In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter until completely liquid but not browned, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat immediately to prevent browning.
Add the brown sugar to the melted butter and stir with a wooden spoon until fully combined with no lumps remaining. Pour in the cream and vanilla extract, stirring until the mixture becomes smooth and glossy. The mixture will be quite thick at this stage.
Let the butter-sugar mixture cool for exactly 5 minutes before adding the egg. While waiting, lightly beat the egg in a small bowl with a fork.
Very slowly stream the beaten egg into the cooled butter mixture, whisking constantly. Once fully mixed, gently stir in the raisins until evenly distributed throughout the filling.
Fill each frozen tart shell about ¾ full with the filling (approximately 1 tablespoon of filling per shell). Don't overfill, or the filling will bubble over during baking.
Bake for 15-18 minutes at 375℉ until the pastry turns golden brown and the filling is actively bubbling.
Remove from the oven. Carefully transfer each tart to a wire rack to cool completely.
Let the tarts cool fully before serving. The filling will set more as it cools but should remain slightly gooey in the center. Enjoy!

Notes

Don't thaw shells before filling.
Watch carefully in the final minutes to prevent overbaking.
Filling will be extremely hot when removed from oven.
You can substitute chopped nuts for raisins.
Freezes well for up to 3 months.

Nutrition