Gramma's Butter Tarts

Prep time: 90 min
Cook time: 20 min
Servings: 24
Yield: 24 servings

Description

These Canadian butter tarts are made with raisins in homemade pastry.

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound lard (such as Tenderflake®)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
11 tablespoons ice cold water
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
2 large eggs
1 cup raisins, rinsed and patted dry
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1 Make pastry: Whisk together flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut lard into flour mixture with a pastry blender until crumbly. Make a well in the center; place 1 beaten egg into the well. Pour in ice-cold water and vinegar; stir with a wooden spoon until dough comes together. Divide dough into 2 balls; wrap each in waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
2 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3 Make filling: Beat together brown sugar and melted butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in raisins and vanilla until incorporated. Set aside.
4 Roll out 1 ball of chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness; reserve remaining dough for another use. Using a round biscuit cutter, cut dough into circles large enough to fit into the bottom and partway up the sides of the wells of a muffin tin. Press dough circles lightly into the muffin tin to form tart shells. Fill each shell 3/4 full with raisin filling.
5 Bake in the preheated oven until filling is bubbly and pastry is lightly browned, about 20 minutes.