Mini Pecan Pies
Mini Pecan Pies have been a family favorite for as long as I can remember. They’re the BEST treat to enjoy and give during the holiday season. Perfectly sweet, with an ooey gooey center and flaky, melt in your mouth, buttery crust. Bring these homemade pecan tarts to your next holiday party or cookie exchange. Your family and friends are sure to love this bite-sized dessert!
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Made these for Thanksgiving and they were a big hit with the whole family! I’ll definitely be making them again around Christmas time!
— Kathryn
Another one of my grandma’s famous desserts today, pecan tarts! We all know Pecan Pie is a classic Thanksgiving dessert and my late grandma’s was seriously the best. She was a legendary cook and did some pretty delicious baking too. She passed away before getting to see Kim’s Cravings come to life, but I know she would be so proud. And quite a few of her recipes grace the pages of this site. If you haven’t tried her spaghetti & meatballs meal, you need to get on that asap!
My grandma’s mini pecan pies have all the same great flavors of her pecan pie in a hand held form. It’s a buttery crust topped with the BEST pecan filling (no corn syrup needed!), and these mini pecan tarts also happen to be super easy to make. If you’re a pecan pie lover, you must add these little treats to your holiday menu! In my opinion, these are even better than regular pecan pie! My family typically enjoys a traditional pecan pie for Thanksgiving and then we make these mini pies for Christmas.
Ingredients needed
This tasty mini pecan pie recipe is made with basic ingredients that you may already have in your kitchen. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Pie crust. The crust is made 100% from scratch, but super easy and only requiring butter, cream cheese and all purpose flour.
- Brown sugar. For that deep rich classic flavor.
- Egg. Just one egg will give the pecan pie filling the perfect texture.
- Butter. Make sure your butter is at room temperature or even a little melty, so it’s easy to stir in with the other filling ingredients.
- Vanilla. For a delicious boost of flavor!
- Pecan pieces. We’re using pecan pieces because we want the chopped pecans, finely chopped, to properly fit in the mini crusts.
How to make this recipe
This dessert recipe is super easy! And there’s no need to worry about pre-baking the crust or pre-cooking the filling. You’ll just need to make sure you have a mini muffin pan.
- Make the crust. This simple tart shell recipe only requires 3 basic ingredients. I like to use my electric mixer to mix the crust ingredients together. Once mixed, roll the dough into 24 small balls. Chill in the refrigerator for 15-20 mins. You can make the filling while the pastry is chilling.
- Mix the filling. In a large mixing bowl, simply stir all of the filling ingredients together.
- Press crust into tart pans & pour filling. Press chilled balls into greased mini muffin tin. Be sure to press crusts up the sides of the pan openings, so that the crust can properly hold all of the filling. Use a spoon to fill each tart evenly with filling. They will be pretty full. See the two photos below to get a good idea of how this should look.
- Bake. Place in the oven and bake at 375ºF for about 15-20 minutes.
- Cool. Remove mini pies from the oven and allow them to cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes.
- Serve. We enjoy these at room temperature. If desired, serve with Cool Whip topping, whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream.
Tips for recipe success
This recipe is really easy, but here are a few tips so that your pecan tassies are perfect!
- When pressing the crust into the mini muffin cavities, be sure to get the crust up around the sides. I use my thumb and then press some around the sides with my fingers. See picture within the recipe steps. You want all of the filling to stay inside the crust.
- The easiest way to remove the mini pecan pies from the muffin pan is to run a butter knife around the edge of crust. If you try pulling them out with your fingers, you run the risk of crumbling the crust.
- Pecan tarts are a great make ahead dessert option because they easily last a week at room temperature.
- I love making tons of these little gems during the holidays for gifts, cookie exchanges and parties. Always check about nut allergies, though, before gifting these!
Frequently asked questions
This recipe for pecan tarts features most of the same ingredients of a classic pecan pie. It calls for brown sugar, butter and pecans.
I’ve never refrigerated my pecan tarts. They keep well for up to about a week and mine never last more that a couple of days.
For mini pies, you’ll want to use finely chopped pecans rather than pecan halves because pecan halves would be too big for the small crusts.
Storage recommendations
Storing leftovers. Pack pecan tartlets in airtight containers once they’ve cooled completely. If you store these at room temperature, they will stay fresh for about a week. If you keep them in the refrigerator, you’ll get to snack on them for about two weeks!
Freezing. These freeze exceptionally well! Place in a large freezer bag or freezer-friendly storage container and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw them, place in the refrigerator overnight, enjoy them chilled or bring them to room temperature before serving.
If you try these, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves them as much as mine does, be sure to give them a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. It’s so fun to see what you’re cooking! Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Mini Pecan Pies
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 cup flour
For the filling:
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon butter at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup pecan pieces
Instructions
- For the crust, mix together butter and cream cheese and then stir in flour. I used my stand mixer for this. Roll into 24 small balls. Chill in the refrigerator for 15-20 mins.
- Meanwhile, make filling by stirring together filling ingredients.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. and spray mini muffin pan with cooking spray.
- Press chilled balls into mini muffin pan. Be sure to get the crust up around the sides. I use my thumb and then press some around the sides with my fingers. Fill each tart evenly with filling. They will be pretty full.
- Bake at 375 degrees F. for 15-20 mins. Remove from the oven and allow tarts to cool for about 15 mins before removing from pan. I run a butter knife around the sides of the tart to make the removal process easier.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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I made these earlier this year for a party, and they were a huge hit. Have you ever tried freezing them? Any special instructions? How far in advance do you think k I could make/freeze them? Thanks for any hints.
So happy they were a hit! I personally haven’t tried freezing them, but I think it would work. I would just store them in a freezer-safe container for about 2, maybe 3 months. Let us know how it works out!
Just made these pecan tarts as a snack — I’m impressed with how easy they were to make and how AMAZING they taste. Will definitely make these during the holidays!
So happy you enjoyed! They are a favorite of mine!
can you use all butter for the cream cheese
I haven’t tried that so I can’t say for sure. Please let us know how it works out if you do give it a try.
Made these for Thanksgiving and they were a big hit with the whole family! I’ll definitely be making them again around Christmas time!