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!
Good recipe, I used one and a half TSP of vanilla extract, also would recommend getting the darkest brown sugar you can find! Also, the pastry was awesome!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Highest praise! After one bite, husband sais “These are f*** good!”
And that’s what I’m talking about! MIC DROP!
Hello! Canadian here. I’ve eaten butter tarts my whole life and I’ve never once seen them made with maple syrup. If you like maple, I’m sure they’re delicious but they aren’t a butter tart! Butter tarts have a filling much like a gooey pecan pie (without the pecans, obvs), not a custard.
Hi Jo-Anne! Thanks for the feedback. One of our contributors who is Canadian came up with this recipe and it was my understanding that different areas of Canadian make them differently? Some with raisins and some with nuts (even pecans, LOL). Can I ask what part of Canada you are from? We are always trying to improve our globally inspired cuisine to be the most accurate possible. Thanks! 🙂
I am new here and I will try all of the receipt’s you have to see what I like.
Welcome and please let us know what we can do to help you out!
Can one make this in a 9″ pie plate rather than individual cups?
Hi Rick, I’m sure you could, but I’m not sure about cooking times, you’d have to play with it a bit.
Would I be able to use store bought puff pastry dough instead of making it?
Just trying to save some time and mess.
Hi! This is a different type of dough and not puff pastry. If you want to use a store bought dough, gran pie crust dough.
These were absolutely amazing! I’ve always been curious about butter tarts (thanks to the song ‘Steal My Sunshine’ by Len). I only have one muffin pan, so I started with a dozen, and refrigerated the extra dough and filling to use a few days later. This made 18 tarts in total for me. To say they were a hit is an understatement! I like that the filling bubbled over a little bit – the caramel-ish edges made this treat even better! I have a feeling the family will be requesting these on a regular basis – luckily I can get maple syrup at Costco! LOL
Hahaha! I’ll be singing that song all day now!
Just found this recipe but will need to wait till I can purchase the maple syrup. Excited! We always vacationed in Canada growing up…and I always looked forward to these. Thank you!
We hope you love them! Please come back and tell us how it went.
Decided to make these in a mini muffin pan for my sisters bridal shower. They turned out amazing! They will be perfect for her bridal tea shower. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Awesome, thank you, Melissa!
Making these; mixture curdled, even though I added the eggs separately. Also, bubbled over while backing, and no, I don’t think I overfilled. In fact I still have some of the filling left.
Any thoughts or suggestions for next time?
Hi Primrose, this is the first time we’ve had that response. Did it curdle while you were making the filling or while it was cooking?