Vegetarian Recipes

Canadian Butter Tarts

Butter Tarts are up there with poutine and maple syrup when it comes to Canadiana for me. The flaky pastry, gooey filling, and sweet buttery flavor all come together to create the perfect bite-sized dessert. I especially love making them around this time of year—when I’m dreaming about fall foliage and seeing my family for the holidays. Most of the ingredients needed are pantry staples, and the tarts themselves are easy to make, so it’s the perfect recipe for any home baker. Make them to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving or to enjoy with a hot cup of coffee on a chilly autumn day!

Overhead view of butter tarts on a parchment lined cooling wrack.

One of my fondest memories of living in Canada was when I had my first butter tart from The Nutty Bean in Lakefield, Ontario. The Nutty Bean is the cutest locally-owned café (in the most picturesque Canadian town ever) owned by the loveliest person of all time. (Shout out to Sherry! I hope you read this!) Sherry just has this magical, cheerful personality that’s so warm and genuine… she’s like a butter tart personified!

What Are Butter Tarts?

Butter tarts are a quintessentially Canadian dessert with a delicious pastry crust filled with a rich mixture of butter, sugar, eggs, and syrup. They’re often enjoyed as a sweet treat during Canadian Thanksgiving, which falls on the second Monday of October each year. But, honestly, these delectable little tarts can be enjoyed all year round (not just during the holidays!)

Some recipes also add nuts and raisins to the filling… but this is quite the controversial topic among butter tart enthusiasts. Traditionalists believe they should be simple and unadorned, while others enjoy the added texture and flavor nuts and raisins bring. As for me? I like to make some with raisins, some with a sprinkle of pecans, and then I leave the rest plain—meaning I get the best of all worlds! You do you, butter tart lovers.

Here’s what you’ll need to make my Canadian butter tarts recipe:

Brown & White Sugar: Equal parts white and brown sugar create a gooey filling with a delicious caramel flavor.
Salt: Just a pinch to enhance the flavors.
Light Corn Syrup: Helps to create a smooth filling by stopping the sugar from crystallizing.
Salted Butter: Using salted butter creates a salty-sweet flavor profile and adds a buttery richness.
Eggs: Gives structure to the filling.
White Vinegar: I know it might seem odd to use vinegar in a dessert recipe, but trust me, it helps balance the sweetness and adds a subtle tanginess. The acidity also helps to prevent the sugar from crystallizing.
Vanilla Extract: Adds a warm, sweet flavor.
Premade Pie Crust: If you can only find the premade pie crusts in packs of 2, I recommend freezing the spare (for more tart making in the future!) or using it for a different recipe like these mini dark chocolate pecan pies. Alternatively, our 3-ingredient pie crust is a great choice if you prefer homemade!
Cooking Spray: For greasing the muffin tin.
Raisins & Pecans: Add-ins that taste amazing in this recipe.

What’s The Difference Between Pecan Pie and Butter Tarts?

I see many people comparing these tarts to the American pecan pie, and I can understand why. Both are sweet and delicious and usually made with similar ingredients. The main difference is that pecan pie has a firmer filling with chopped pecans on top, while butter tarts have a softer filling, which can be left plain with no toppings. Pecan pies are also traditionally larger and served in slices, while the tarts are smaller and eaten in individual portions. Both are delicious in their own way, but they’re not the same!

Again, this is another topic that sparks a lot of debate! Different families have their own preferences regarding the texture of the filling. Some like a runnier filling, while others prefer a firmer consistency. Personally, I think the perfect butter tart has a soft, custard-like filling that’s just starting to set—not too runny and definitely not too firm. Avoid overcooking them if you also prefer a softer filling.

Storage Instructions

Let your tarts cool before storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days. For longer storage, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the fridge before enjoying. You can also reheat them in the oven at 300 degrees to help bring back that freshly baked taste.

Butter Tarts Recipe

This easy Butter Tarts recipe is all you need to make delicious Canadian butter tarts at home. They’re buttery, sweet, and perfectly gooey!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Canadian

Total Cost ($5.33 recipe / $0.44 serving)

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Servings tarts

Calories 240kcal

Author Jess – Budget Bytes

Equipment

Ingredients

½ cup brown sugar, packed $0.34
½ cup white sugar $0.36
½ tsp salt $0.01
½ cup light corn syrup $0.63
¼ cup salted butter, melted $0.60
2 eggs $0.44
1 teaspoon white vinegar $0.01
1 teaspoon vanilla extract $0.47
1 9” premade pie crust, thawed $1.38
cooking spray $0.01
3 Tbsp raisins $0.36
2 Tbsp pecans $0.72

Instructions

Combine brown sugar, white sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
In a separate mixing bowl, combine corn syrup, melted salted butter, eggs, white vinegar, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.
Pour liquid mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Set aside.
Roll out the premade pie crust on parchment so it is flat and even. You’re not really rolling it out to make it much thinner, just to make it all consistently the same. Sometimes, I find the premade dough has thicker edges.
Using a large cookie cutter or the jar of a large mason jar (that’s what I did!) cut out mini crusts. You can use all of the dough scraps, so keep them to make more tart crusts!
Lightly grease a cupcake tin with cooking spray. Gently press the tart crusts into each cup and gather the raisins and pecans. Add a few raisins and/or pecan pieces to each crust. I like to leave some plain, prepare some with raisins, and some with pecans. Then, fill each tart with the liquid filling mix. Leave about ¼ of the inch at the top of each tart crust when filling, if possible. I overfilled a few, which caused them to overflow during baking. Oops!
Before popping them in the oven, add a few more raisins and/or pecan pieces to each tart.
Bake for 20 minutes. They may still be a little jiggly when you take them out of the oven, but they will firm up. They are best when the center is custard-like, so don’t overcook.

See how we calculate recipe costs here.

Nutrition

A hand taking a butter tart from a parchment lined cooling rack.

how to make Butter Tarts – step by step photos

Dry ingredients for butter tarts in a mixing bowl.

Combine ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup white sugar, and ½ tsp salt in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.

Wet ingredients for butter tarts in a mixing bowl.

In a separate mixing bowl, combine ½ cup corn syrup, ¼ cup melted salted butter, 2 eggs, 1 tsp white vinegar, and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.

Pouring butter tart wet ingredients into the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.

Pour liquid mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Hands using a rolling pin to roll out premade pie crust.

Roll out 1 pre-made pie crust on parchment so it is flat and even. You’re not really rolling it out to make it much thinner, just to make it all consistently the same. Sometimes, I find the premade dough has thicker edges.

A hand cutting circles out of premade pie crust for butter tarts.

Using a large cookie cutter or the jar of a large mason jar (that’s what I did!) cut out mini crusts. You can use all of the dough scraps, so keep them to make more tart crusts!

A spoon adding butter tart filling to pie crusts in a cupcake tin, some with pecans and some with raisins.

Lightly grease a cupcake tin with cooking spray. Gently press the tart crusts into each cup and gather 3 Tbsp raisins and 2 Tbsp pecans. Add a few raisins and/or pecan pieces to each crust. I like to leave some plain, prepare some with raisins, and some with pecans. Then, fill each tart with the liquid filling mix. Leave about ¼ of the inch at the top of each tart crust when filling, if possible. I overfilled a few, which caused them to overflow during baking. Oops!

Pie crusts in a cupcake tin filled with butter tart filling.

Before popping them in the oven, add a few more raisins and/or pecan pieces to each tart.

Freshly baking butter tarts in a cupcake tin.

Bake for 20 minutes. They may still be a little jiggly when you take them out of the oven, but they will firm up. They are best when the center is custard-like, so don’t overcook.

These Canadian butter tarts couldn’t be easier to make and are always a hit with anyone who tries them!

Side view of a pumpkin pie bar on a white plate with whipped cream on top.

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The post Canadian Butter Tarts appeared first on Budget Bytes.

Cheesy Vegetarian

Homity Pie (Cheesy Potato and Leek Pie)

If you’re not familiar with homity pie, let me introduce you:

Homity pie is a traditional British recipe, which is essentially a cheesy potato and leek pie. It’s just the sort of thing we Brits do perfectly – simple ingredients, combined to make incredible comfort food. Say what you like about British food, but it’s hard to argue with buttery sautéed leeks, cheesy crushed potatoes, and a flaky shortcrust pastry case.

A slice of homity pie (cheesy potato and leek pie).

I’m not going to lie, this homity pie is a bit of a labour of love. It’s not a quick weeknight meal like most of my recipes – this cheesy pie is definitely one to save for a special occasion (it would be perfect for a vegetarian Christmas dinner!).

Since cooking this pie takes a bit of time and patience, don’t try to cook it against the clock. Give yourself plenty of leeway – perhaps an afternoon where you’ve not got much else on. That way, it doesn’t matter if the potatoes have to sit for a little while so you can finish cooking the leeks, or if the pastry case is ready to fill before the filling is actually cooked – you can just potter away at your own pace, and it can all be assembled when you’re ready.

Overhead shot of a cheesy pie with a slice pulled away.

What’s in Homity Pie?

There are three parts to this recipe:

garlicky sautéed leeks and onion
buttery crushed potatoes (with a cheesy topping)
a crispy pastry case

These 3 elements can all be prepared simultaneously, or one at a time, depending on how good you are at multitasking. I’ve written the recipe in 3 separate parts, but if the timings work out (or if you have someone else helping you in the kitchen), you can prepare them all at the same time.

Once all three parts of the recipe are ready, they can be assembled, and baked one last time to complete your cheesy homity pie.

And by the way, I am 100% not a pastry expert. You may think my homity pie looks decidedly… rustic. But I like it that way If I wanted it to look perfect, I’d have saved myself a couple of hours, and bought one in a shop.

Becca’s Top Tip

Any extra scraps of pastry can be baked on their own, and eaten spread with strawberry jam – my kids love it when I cook with pastry as they always get little jam tarts!

Cheesy Vegetarian Bakes ebook on an ipad screen.

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Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe. See the printable recipe card below for detailed ingredient quantities.

leek – It’s hard to get the scale from the picture, but the leek I used was absolutely enormous – a proper monster (probably as big as my forearm!). If your leeks are a more normal size, you’ll probably need at least two.
potatoes
shortcrust pastry – I used a ready-rolled sheet of shop-bought pastry, as making pastry is not my forte. Feel free to use homemade pastry if you prefer!
cheddar cheese – If possible, use freshly grated mature cheddar cheese rather than the pre-grated stuff, as it melts more nicely.
onion – I used red onion, but regular onions would also be good.
fresh parsley
egg
garlic – I used pre-minced garlic from a jar because I hate chopping large amounts of fresh garlic.
curry powder (optional, but it does add a lovely hint of warmth)

Becca’s Top Tip

If you’re using shop-bought pastry, take it out of the fridge an hour or so before you need to use it. This helps it to soften a little, and means it’s less likely to crack as you unroll it.

Recipe Video

Equipment

I like to use a loose bottomed springform cake tin for homemade pies. It works really well because:

The clip on the side and the loose bottom make it so easy to remove the pie from the tin once it’s finished baking.
It gives a nice tall pie, which looks great, and also gives a wonderfully thick layer of filling.
The metal heats up nicely and helps to crisp up the pastry.

You can use a shallower pie tin to make homity pie if that’s what you have, but I would always recommend a cake tin if you have one.

Here’s a similar one on Amazon, with great reviews:

8-Inch Springform Cake Tin

I love using a loose-bottomed springform cake tin to make homemade pie. If you’re in the UK or Australia, click ‘Buy on Amazon’ to view a local product.

A slice of homity pie with sautéed leeks, potatoes and cheese.

Printable Instructions

Homity Pie (Cheesy Potato and Leek Pie)

How to make the classic British recipe homity pie (cheesy potato and leek pie!) – a tasty vegetarian pie made with shortcrust pastry.

Course Main Course

Cuisine British, English

Diet Vegetarian

Prep Time 50

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 30

Servings people

Calories 427kcal

Author Becca Heyes