Caramel-Pecan Fudge Tarts

By michelew7

Ingredients

• White Flour Crust:
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup cold butter
• 4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
• Filling:
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 3/4 cup softened caramels, packed
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Details

Servings 12
Cooking time 45mins

Preparation

Step 1

Crust:
Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into small cubes, and work it into the dry ingredients using your fingers, a pastry blender or fork, or a mixer until the dough is unevenly crumbly. Drizzle in ice water, mixing until the dough is cohesive. Grab a handful; if it holds together willingly and doesn't seem at all dry or crumbly, you've added enough liquid.

Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a disk. Roll each on its edge along a floured work surface, as though the disk were a wheel, to smooth the edges out. Pat the disks till they're about 1" thick, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or for up to 2 days.

Remove dough from the refrigerator; if it's been refrigerated for longer than an hour, allow it to warm a bit and become flexible, 15 to 30 minutes. Divide each piece of dough into six equal pieces; each will weigh about 1 1/2 ounces, if you have a scale. Gently round each piece into a disk.

Flour your work surface. Roll each disk into a 6" circle. Press the circles of dough into the wells of a standard muffin pan. The pan doesn't need to be greased. Crimp the edges of crust that extend above the wells of the pan. Refrigerate the tart shells, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees while you prepare the filling.

Filling:
In a small saucepan set over low heat, or in the microwave, heat together the corn syrup, caramel, butter, sugar and salt, stirring till the mixture is smooth. Don't let it get too hot; just heat until the caramel and butter melt. Remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and vinegar, then the eggs, beating until everything is well combined.

To assemble the tarts: Sprinkle 1 tablespoon chocolate chips in the bottom of each tart shell. Add a scant 3 tablespoons (a scant 2 ounces) caramel filling; a muffin scoop works well here. The filling should come to within about 3/8" of the top of the pastry. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon chopped pecans atop the filling.

Bake the tarts for 45 minutes. The tarts will puff up and become golden brown and bubbly. Remove them from the oven (they'll fall down; that's what they're supposed to do), and serve warm, or at room temperature. Ice cream or whipped cream is always a plus.