Oh Canada! Our home and native land. True patriot love, in all our butter tart filled hands…
Canada day is coming soon, and to celebrate my country I wanted to make a Canadian classic, butter tarts. If you are new to butter tarts, then you are likely not Canadian as butter tarts make an appearance at pretty much every holiday, every bake sale, and in every bakery in Canada. This recipe has been requested of me for a long time, so it was due time for me to release my Easy Vegan Butter Tarts into the world. And oooeee am I glad I did!
Traditionally butter tarts are made with dairy and eggs, so it took several attempts to veganize them to perfection, but oh did I veganize them, and oh are they perfect! Rave reviews from all who sampled these beauties (non-vegans included).
In my easy vegan butter tarts, the tart shells are filled with raisins (trust me on this, this is traditional), and a mixture of vegan butter, sugar, and cornstarch (which replaces the eggs). Once baked the mixture turns into a gorgeous sweet caramel, sticky, drippy, amazing goo, and the raisins melt right into that sweet goodness.
For my vegan butter tarts, I give you the option of having a runnier or thicker filling as many have a preference one way or the other, and you can optionally top the tarts with pecans or walnuts if you desire.
Not a raisin fan? Even though raisins are traditional in butter tarts, (and in my opinion are WAY better than they sound), there are some who prefer raisin-free tarts. You can replace the raisins with 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans.
To make Easy Vegan Butter Tarts: You can either simply use store-bought vegan tart shells (some brands are accidentally vegan so check the ingredients. Or you can may my Easy Vegan Pie Crust and make your own tart shells from scratch.
If using homemade pastry, roll out the pastry nice and thin and cut 8 circles about 5 1/2″ diameter, re-rolling the pastry scraps if needed. I had a latte mug that was the perfect size so I used that to cut my pastry. Fit the pastry circles into 8 wells a muffin pan, wobbly edges are totally ok and are authentic for butter tarts.
Add 1 tablespoon of raisins to the bottom of each tart shell.
In a medium bowl, beat together the brown sugar, vegan butter, non-dairy milk, cornstarch and vanilla until smooth and creamy. For a slightly runnier filling use 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and for a thicker filling use 2 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
Divide the butter-sugar mixture among each tart shell covering the raisins, about 1 1/2 tablespoons of liquid per tart. The tarts will be about 2/3rd full which is perfect. Optionally, you can top the tarts with pecans or walnuts. I did half with pecans and half without.
Bake for about 23 minutes, the filling will be bubbly and foamy. Remove from oven and let cool completely before serving. You may need to run a knife around the edges of the tarts to help release them from the pan.
The Canadian classic dessert made vegan. Tastes just like the traditional recipe but its egg and dairy free! Perfect for Canada day or any holiday treat.
- 1 recipe Easy Vegan Pie Crust (or 8 store-bought vegan tart shells)g
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup vegan butter
- 3 tablespoons non-dairy milk (such as soy or almond)
- 2 - 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch *see instructions
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts, whole or chopped (optional)
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (170 degrees C).
If using homemade pastry, roll out the pastry nice and thin and cut 8 circles about 5 1/2" diameter, re-rolling the pastry scraps if needed. I had a latte mug that was the perfect size so I used that to cut my pastry. Fit the pastry circles into 8 wells a muffin pan, wobbly edges are totally ok and are authentic for butter tarts.
Add 1 tablespoon of raisins to the bottom of each tart shell.
In a medium bowl, beat together the brown sugar, vegan butter, non-dairy milk, cornstarch and vanilla until smooth and creamy. *For a slightly runnier filling use 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and for a thicker filling use 2 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Divide the butter-sugar mixture among each tart shell covering the raisins, about 1 1/2 tablespoons of liquid per tart. The tarts will be about 2/3rd full which is perfect. Optionally, you can top the tarts with pecans or walnuts. I did half with pecans and half without.
Bake for about 23 minutes, the filling will be bubbly and foamy. Remove from oven and let cool completely before serving. You may need to run a knife around the edges of the tarts to help release them from the pan.
Not a raisin fan? Even though raisins are traditional in butter tarts, (and in my opinion are WAY better than they sound), there are some who prefer raisin-free tarts. You can replace the raisins with 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans.
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
Hi, I have a question regarding the vegan butter, is it in stick form or spreadable?
You can use whatever you like. My go-to is the original tub of Earth Balance.
Thank you for this!!! Butter tarts are one of the non-vegan things I miss the most. I had to wait an entire year between veg fests to get a butter tart.
Haha oh no! Wait no longer!! I hope you love them, Jen 🙂
Can’t wait to try! BTW, my dad always made the BEST butter tarts (non vegan), but used currants instead of raisins – worked great 🙂
Awesome! I am sure currants would work great here as well 🙂
Hi, for vegan butters most use palm oil, which is leading to the destruction of the rain forests in indonesia and the main cause of the decline of orangutans, which will be extinct in 10 years. Are their vegans butters you can recommended that don’t use palm oil or use sustainable palm oil from places other than indonesia?
I make my own butter, using this recipe: https://avirtualvegan.com/easy-vegan-butter/
It’s easy and delicious, and I’ve had good results baking with it. Hope that helps!
Thanks for that information about the palm oil my friend.
Hi Lauren, yes you’re right and it is terrible. My go to is Earth Balance which is sustainably sourced, and here is a great article on vegan butters with this concern in mind.
Thanks Sam! Will check out the article