These Canadian butter tarts pair an ultra-flaky homemade crust with a gooey maple-brown sugar filling that sets just enough to hold its shape. The dough mixes fast in a food processor, presses into a muffin tin, and bakes into bite-size tarts with shiny tops and caramelized edges.
Why You’ll Love Them!
A flaky crust and a gooey filling- what’s not to love about these canadian butter tarts?
- Flaky, buttery crust – This crust recipe is homemade, easy to make and even easier to roll and press.
- Gooey maple filling – With classic caramel notes, this gooey maple filling is filled with warmth and perfectly sweet.
- Made in a muffin tin – No special tart pans are needed to make this dessert- just your muffin tin!
Ingredients Checklist
The ingredient list for these canadian butter tarts is fairly simple using kitchen basics.. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Maple syrup- this is probably the most important part, use real maple syrup, not maple flavored sugar water. To get the right texture, a thick syrup is ideal. Some recipes use corn syrup, but I prefer the flavor of maple syrup. Even opt for a flavored syrup like bourbon laced.
- Flour
- Sugar
- Fine sea salt
- Unsalted butter
- Cold water
- Brown sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
5S Philosophy 👩🏻
- Salt – Because we use unsalted butter in both the crust and the filling, we add a pinch of fine sea salt to both as well. It helps to bring out the other flavors.
- Sauces – You could drizzle any number of dessert sauces over these butter tarts. White chocolate sauce, butterscotch sauce or salted caramel sauce would be delicious.
- Swaps – Try adding dried fruit or nuts to the filling. Things like raisins, currants, dates, figs, walnuts or chocolate chips would be perfect.
- Senses – These Canadian butter tarts are a golden, gooey indulgence with a crisp, flaky shell that shatters gently under your fork. The filling is rich and buttery—sweet like caramel, with a hint of vanilla and brown sugar warmth.
Test Kitchen Tips
I’ve tested these canadian butter tarts several times to bring you the best tips and tricks.
- Grease tins thoroughly – To make sure your tarts have an easy release from the pan, make sure to grease your pan thoroughly.
- Keep dough cold – Try to chill the shaped shells while mixing filling. This helps them to hold their shape.
- Don’t overfill – If you leave a little headroom and don’t overfill, it will help to prevent boil-over.
More Easy Desserts
We do love easy dessert recipes over here, but they need to be easy- we all know I am a lazy baker!
Canadian Butter Tarts Recipe
A Canadian treat that everyone should try, these EASY Canadian Butter Tarts consist of a flaky crust filled with a buttery, caramel-like, gooey center!
Servings: tarts
Ingredients
Crust
- 2-1/2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter , cold
- 3/4 cup cold water
Filling
- ¼ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs , at room temperature
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Crust:
- Using a food processor, pulse the 2-1/2 cups flour, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 teaspoon fine sea salt. Add the 1 cup unsalted butter in chunks, pulse 5 to 8 times, or until butter is in small pieces. Add the 3/4 cup cold water and pulse until the dough starts coming together.
- Turn the dough onto 2 plastic wrap pieces lying flat. Cover over and pat into a disc. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Dough will be super sticky, this is normal.
- Sprinkle a small amount of flour on a flat surface and roll out one portion at the time, about 1/8 of an inch thick. Use a round cutter or lid (4 inches) and cut 15 pieces.
- Grease 1 muffin pan completely and 3 muffin cups from a second pan. Press each dough circle into the bottom of a muffin pan cup. Refrigerate while making the filling.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Filling
- Cream the softened ¼ cup unsalted butter and packed 1/2 cup brown sugar together. Add the 2 eggs one at the time. Mix in the 1 cup maple syrup, 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. The filling is a chunky custard and very loose. If you make this ahead and set aside, you'll need to whisk before pouring into muffin tins.
- Pour the filling into pie crust and bake for 25 minutes. It is easiest to use a glass measuring cup with a pour spout.
- Let the tarts cool for 5 minutes in the pan and remove to a cooling rack.
- If you've tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comment or ratings!
Video
Notes
How to Store
Mini butter tarts keep well at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week. Place them in an airtight container.Can I Freeze Butter Tarts?
Yes, you can freeze Canadian Butter Tarts for up to two months in an airtight container or freezer bag.Nutrition
Calories: 264 kcal, Carbohydrates: 29 g, Protein: 2 g, Fat: 16 g, Saturated Fat: 10 g, Cholesterol: 62 mg, Sodium: 342 mg, Potassium: 79 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 21 g, Vitamin A: 504 IU, Calcium: 39 mg, Iron: 1 mg
Did you make this recipe?I’d love to see your recipes – snap a picture and mention @savoryexperiments or tag #savoryexperiments!
Made these tonight and they turned out fabulous! Added raisins – cuz gotta have ’em! Great dough recipe I will use again and I will definitely be making these again! Thank you!!
Yay! That is what we love to hear and thank YOU for coming back to let us know!
These were so delicious! I used maple syrup from Elmira Ontario Canada made by a lovely Mennonite family and the flavour was incredible. The texture of the crust is perfect! This is my go to recipe for butter tarts.
As soon as I saw this recipe I knew I had to make them. Had to order the real maple syrup and some new muffin pans but it was worth it! Wish I had kept them in about 5 minutes longer but they were loved!
I can’t wait to make these. Can I brown the butter for the filling? Also can I use Mrs. Buttersworth maple buttery syrup instead of pure maple syrup?
Hi Karen, You can brown the butter for sure. I would try to use pure maple syrup if at all possible, Mrs. Buttersworth is corn syrup with maple flavoring, it is a lot thinner than maple syrup so it might mess up the consistency of the filling and they won’t set right.
Amazing recipe! I’ve made it 3 times now. Once I subbed corn syrup for sone of the maple syrup. Would not recommend! Worth a trip to the store for more maple syrup. Yummy!
Thank you for the feedback, Rebecca!
Thanks for the clean, uncluttered link straight to the recipe – will definitely follow you for that reason alone!
Thanks 🙂 We try to balance being user friendly, but also support our family with the blog. Unfortunately, ads are a part of that.
Such an easy, great recipe. Perfect every time. Not runny. 🏆
Thank you, Tracy!!!! <3
These are incredibly delicious. I did cheat and used premade tart shells, but it was still wonderful. I love raisins and nuts in mine so I added some. The maple creates the perfect flavour and texture. The way it stays gooey in the middle is magic. Will definitely be using this recipe forever. Thank you!
Thank YOU for coming back to let us know!
Did I miss what temperature you bake these at?
350 degrees- last step of making the crust is to preheat the oven to 350 🙂 happy holidays!
This brought so many memories flooding back to me, Christmas baking with my Mom. It is the recipe she used for her tarts. I am going to make them now. I wish I could show you her old cookbook I have sitting here, all tattered and taped, stained from many years of baking for her family and then mine. I miss her so much. Those years baking with her, probably getting in her way in truth, fueled a passion for baking that has been in me since. It is all about the love and connections. Thank you for triggering such happy thoughts. It has been such a difficult year for our planet. Bless you.
Aww, Sandra, I hope they bring you so much love and joy. I can say 100% that they are delicious and I hope they taste just like you remember. Happy holidays <3
The crust is delicious and easy to make but the filling you can taste the egg.
Hi Rhonda- just curious what kind of syrup you used? It is a custard, so it is egg based and will be slightly eggy, but the maple piece is important. Just trying to troubleshoot for others and if you use a maple flavored syrup opposed to a grade real maple syrup, it makes a world of difference. Thanks for your feedback!
I love the texture of the filling. Thanks for sharing this recipe, will definitely be making this one again.