These butter tarts, along with whipped shortbread, are my family’s two most beloved Christmas recipes. There are two major factions of butter tart lovers out there – the type who love raisins and/or nuts in their butter tarts and those who hate them. We’re clearly in the raisins and nuts camp. My mom also sometimes put cinnamon and nutmeg in hers but I’ve realized they aren’t actually called for in Grandma Donna’s recipe. My wife and I both prefer them without spices.

Use 1 recipe of Grandma Donna’s pastry and 1.5x this recipe to make 3 dozen butter tarts.

Ingredients

• ¼ to ½ cup of Earth balance
• 1 ½ to 2 cups of brown sugar
• 1 ½ cups of raisins or currants
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanlilla
• 1 cup chopped nuts (I prefer pecans)

Yield: 3 dozen butter tarts

Preheat oven to 375^o.

Soak raisins in boiling water for 10 mins. Drain and dry the raisins.

Beat the Earth balance, sugar and egg. Fold in the remaining ingredients. Fill tart shells ¾ full. Bake for 20 mins.