Butter Tart
A hearty vegetarian built around shortening, corn syrup or maple syrup and raisins — roughly 70 minutes start to finish, and rated medium to make. Scroll down for the ingredient checklist, a serving scaler and unit converter, and the method broken into 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven and saucepan. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (3)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
Diet: vegetarian — no meat or fish, based on every ingredient listed below.
Contains: Gluten Dairy Egg
Allergen labels are informational and may not cover cross-contact; verify every package and consult a qualified professional for medical dietary needs. Diet labels are derived from the ingredient list on this page — how we verify diet and allergen labels.
Food-safety and allergen information is general, not medical advice. Follow current guidance from your local food-safety authority, verify product labels, and seek qualified advice for allergies or health conditions.
How to make it
- To make the pastry, whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder, then cut in the shortening and cold butter with a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Sprinkle in the boiling water and stir just until the dough comes together, then wrap and chill it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375 F and grease a 12-cup muffin tin; roll the chilled dough out thin, cut into rounds and press one into each cup to form shells.
- Divide the raisins among the pastry shells, scattering them evenly across the bottoms.
- In a bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, syrup, softened butter, eggs and vanilla until smooth, then spoon the filling into each shell until about two-thirds full to leave room for bubbling.
- Bake on the lower rack for 18 to 22 minutes until the pastry is golden and the filling is puffed and bubbling but still slightly jiggly in the center.
- Let the tarts cool in the tin for 10 minutes so the filling sets, then gently run a knife around each one and lift them out to finish cooling on a rack.
You'll use: Oven · Saucepan · Whisk
Ingredient substitutions
- Butter
- olive oil (¾ the amount) · coconut oil · margarine
- Brown Sugar
- white sugar + 1 tbsp molasses per cup
- Eggs
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking) · 1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water per egg
Tips & common questions
How long does Butter Tart take to make?
About 70 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 12 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of butter?
Try olive oil (¾ the amount). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Butter Tart vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat, fish or shellfish, so it is suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheese for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Adapted recipe — rewritten in our own wording from an open-licensed community cookbook, not yet independently kitchen-tested by Consomee. How we source, test & correct recipes.
Butter Tart is adapted by Consomee from the Wikibooks Cookbook, rewritten in our own wording and used under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo: Pecan butter tart, May 2011.jpg by Hisakazu Watanabe, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure — how we source recipes.