½cup(100g) firmly packed light (or dark) brown sugar
1large egg
1teaspoonvanilla extract
½teaspoonground cinnamon
¼teaspoonorange zest I use jarred, you may use fresh
¼teaspoonsalt
⅛teaspoonground nutmeg
¾cup(82g) chopped pecansapproximately 3 ounces
Instructions
Prepare the homemade pie crust. When it is thoroughly chilled, place the dough onto a floured work surface and roll into a large circle (approximately 12" in diameter and about 1/4" thickness).
Using a 2 and 1/2" cookie cutter, cut smaller circles from your large circle of dough. If you don't have a cookie cutter this size, a metal 1/3 cup measuring cup or any cup or glass that is 2 and 1/2" in diameter will work fine. Re-roll dough scraps until you have used all of the dough, working quickly to ensure the butter in the dough doesn't get too warm.
Place each dough circle into the wells of a 24-count mini muffin pan. Press the dough flat into the bottom of the well and up the sides. The mini crusts do not have to go the whole way up the side, but should go most of the way. Chill the pan in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
When your mini muffin pan is done chilling, preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC). Pre-bake the mini crusts for 6 minutes. This will ensure the bottoms do not become soggy when they are filled. Prepare the filling while the crusts bake.
To make the filling, melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave and allow it to cool for a few minutes. In a medium size bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, egg, vanilla, orange zest, cinnamon, salt, ad nutmeg. Add the melted butter, whisk again, then stir in the chopped pecans with a large spoon or spatula.
When crusts are pre-baked, remove from the oven and fill each crust with 1 teaspoon of pecan pie filling.
Bake tarts for 14-16 minutes or until the crusts just begin to brown. Be careful not to over bake the tarts, as this could make them hard and burned instead of soft and slightly crispy. If some filling spills out, this is ok. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan until you are able to handle them. Once cool enough to handle, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Pecan pie tarts stay fresh in an airtight container up to 4 days or in the refrigerator up to one week. Baked tarts can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator.
Notes
As stated in the pie crust recipe, the crust can be prepared ahead of time. You may also prepare the filling ahead of time. Store covered in the refrigerator up to one day.Recipe inspired by Alton Brown's Bourbon Pecan Pie
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.