Pecan Cherry Butter Tarts and a Giveaway!

My little girl is two months old as of yesterday.  Wow, this has been a fast two months but an awesome two months. A few small moments of insanity off set by a million moments of joy and laughter. I think we spend half our days now sticking out our tongue and blowing our lips trying to make her smile.  We survived our first set of shots this past Monday quite well. Might have been worse for Mommy than baby.  I even sit here finishing up this post as she just lays beside me,  not sleeping unfortunately but not crying.  She is just content at staring off to the ceiling.   Sleep training hasn't quite started yet, maybe another month or so and I am sure you will hear all about my trials and tribulations.  Any tips the moms out there would like to offer in advance?

I needed a break from cookies and bars so here are some yummy gooey tarts to tempt you.   See below for the the giveaway.




Pecan Cherry Butter Tarts

INGREDIENTS:

Dough (adapted from Fine Cooking)

• 8 oz (1 3/4 cup) unbleached all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 oz ( 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold
• 6 oz cream cheese, cold

Filling (adapted from my mom)

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup golden corn syrup
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
• pinch of salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1/3 cup chopped dried cherries

INSTRUCTIONS:

Make the Dough
1) Combine and mix together the flour, sugar and salt in your mixer bowl.
2) Add in the butter in chunks and mix on low speed until the dough resembles coarse pea size crumbs. Add in cream cheese in chunks and mix on medium low until dough just starts to come together and clumps around the paddle.
3) Turn dough on to your work surface and bring together to capture any loose pieces. You want to see streaks of cream cheese. Wrap in saran and refrigerate until cold and slightly firm. If you pass this point and the dough is too hard just let it soften slightly on your counter before rolling.

Make the Filling

1) Combine sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, vinegar, salt and egg in a medium bowl.  Whisk together, until well combined. 

Make Tarts

1) Preheat the oven to 375F. Roll out the dough and cut out 12 circles, the size that would fill a muffin tin and go about 2/3 the way up. 

2) Spread the pecans and dried cherries between the 12 shells.  Then fill the shells 2/3 full with the wet mixture.  You may have a bit of extra wet mixture.  Do not overfill the shells. 

3) Bake for 20-25 minutes until filling is bubbling and shells are golden on the top.  The filling will look like it is bubbling over but will settle as it cools.

GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am lucky enough to be involved in a giveaway with a great group of bloggers. Click on any of the tiles below to get to their sites.   I suggest you check them all out.

 We have all banned to gather to offer you a KINDLE FIRE and a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.

Use the rafflecopter below to enter, the more you enter the more chances you have to win.  I will cross my fingers for all of you.   Good Luck!  Winner will be announced around Jan 25th from Wine & Glue, but I will let you know here as well.

a Rafflecopter giveaway