Pecan Pie Bites

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Last year, I made a pecan pie for the first time.  Since its so rich and most people want to try slices of all of the desserts – I decided to make these mini pecan pies this year.  Perfect one or two bites – they are all you need when you are already full and you-can’t-help-but-keep-eating-because-its-Thanksgiving.

The only issue with a dessert like this is that it takes longer to make than an actual pie!  I only have one mini muffin pan – so I had to make these in two batches.  And its more involved because you have to press in all of the crusts and bake them – then pour in the filling and bake that – and then cool in the pan.   But I promise you that its worth all of the effort.  I’ll definitely be making these again next year!   Enjoy!

Ingredients

crust:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 2/3 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. table salt

Filling:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup real maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. table salt
• 6 oz. chopped pecans
• Kosher salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat mini muffin pans with nonstick spray.

2. Cream butter and 2/3 cup brown sugar in a bowl with a mixer until blended. Add the flour and salt; mix until sandy. Dough will seem dry.

3. Press 1 Tbsp. of dough into each well of prepared muffin tins, shaping up the sides. Prebake the shells for 6 minutes or until set and lightly golden around the edges.

4. Remove from the oven and pat the bottoms down lightly with a small spoon. Set the shells aside.

5. For the filling: whisk both sugars, eggs, maple syrup, butter, vanilla, table salt, and pecans together in a bowl. Pour about 1 Tbsp. filling into each shell. Bake for 15 minutes, or until filling is set and crust is browned.

6. Sprinkle tartlets with kosher salt, then let cool in the pan for 15 minutes. To remove, run a knife around each and carefully lift out.

Makes about 4 dozen tartlets.

Source: Kokocooks

Printer-friendly version