Brown Butter Raspberry Tarts

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Brown Butter Raspberry Tarts: the perfect combination of gooey sweet filling, and tart fresh raspberries, with a really easy pastry. Great for a beginner.

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Ingredients
Instructions
Substitutions
Storing The Tarts
Recipe
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These brown butter raspberry tarts are a little hard to describe. They're sweet and gooey, a little like a butter tart, but then the raspberries are the perfect tart balance to the sweet. I'd say they're pretty much perfection. These would be the perfect addition to a tea party, or a sweet tray. They'd make a lovely lunch or dinner dessert. They're absolutely perfection along side a cup of coffee or tea.

They're sooo good.

The first time I had them, I kept thinking about them and just how perfect they are. A brown butter raspberry tart and cup of tea, is pretty much what dreams are made of.

how to make Brown Butter Raspberry Tarts

Ingredients

Pastry

This is actually a pretty easy pastry recipe, because it's done in the mixer, almost like a cookie recipe. This is a great recipe for a beginner and makes a lovely sweet pastry perfect for tarts.

Filling

This filling is very similar to a butter tart -if you're Canadian you know exactly what that is. If not, it's a bit similar to the filling in a pecan pie -without the pecans.

Browned Butter

Browning the butter gives it a nutty flavor and depth. When the butter is browned the milk solids caramelize and it adds so much to this recipe. It's definitely worth the trouble.

Fresh Raspberries

The combination of the sweet filling with the tart raspberry in this recipe just cannot be beat. The whole greater than the sum of its parts. Fresh is best for this recipe.

Instructions

To make the tart dough, cream the room temperature butter and sugar together using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy and pale yellow.

Add the eggs one at a time and beat until fully mixed.

Add the flour and sugar-egg mixture, and mix until it forms a dough.

Gather the dough into a ball and chill.

Dust the work surface with flour, and roll out dough with a rolling pin and cut out into tart shells. Press dough into a tart pan. Prick tart shells with a fork before baking.

Preheat the oven to 350, and position rack in the center of oven. Bake the empty tarts for 7-8 minutes, until the tartlet cases are lightly golden.

To make the filling, melt butter in a heavy small saucepan over medium high heat, and cook butter until the butter is a deep nutty brown and there are brown flecks on the bottom of the pan. The browned butter will foam up and then settle, and have a nutty aroma.

Whisk sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt together in a bowl. Whisk the flour in gently, then pour in the browned melted butter in a steady stream continuing to whisk constantly.

Place 2 -3 raspberries in each tart shell, and pour filling over top.

Bake the tarts at 350 for 10 minutes until they are golden brown and the filling is set.

Let cool in the tart pan on a wire rack. Remove from the pans, and dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Makes 20-22 tarts. Best eaten the day they are made, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container.

Substitutions

You can use frozen raspberries for this recipe if you can't get fresh. You want to be careful not to add liquid though, so be sure to add the raspberries while they're still frozen or thaw and drain them first.

Storing The Tarts

These really are best eaten right away. On the first day when they're fresh baked, the pastry is perfectly crisp, and the filling is perfectly gooey. It's a good idea to bake this tart recipe the day you need them.

The good news is, you can get ahead by making the dough the day before and wrapping it in plastic wrap and storing it in the fridge to roll out and bake the tart crust the next day. You could also make the filling the day before. Mix it up in a mixing bowl, and cover tightly and refrigerate. When it's time to assemble the tarts, pre-bake the tart shells, add the deeply-flavored filling and the raspberries, and then bake again.

If you do have leftovers store them at room temperature in an airtight container.

Can I use frozen tart shells?

We love these easy pastry tart shells, but if you're in a rush you can substitute frozen pastry shells. Defrost them, prick them with a fork and pre-bake the tart shells, just like in the recipe.

Can I use this recipe for one large tart?

The quantities in this recipe are perfect for individual tart size. We've never tried to adjust the recipe for one large tart. We recommend making the smaller individual tart size with this recipe.

Can I use a different fruit?

We love the contrast of the tart raspberries with the sweet filling. If you want to try a different fruit, try to use something not too sweet like a sour cherry. Blueberries or strawberries might be too sweet. We haven't tried substituting the fruit, but please comment below if you try it.