I really didn’t want to make these tarts today.  Don’t get me wrong – they’re delicious – and therein lies the problem.  Without realizing it, you’ve eaten one, two, five…and then oops, there goes the post-Thanksgiving, pre-Christmas diet!  But hey, it’s the holiday season, right?

We bought our Christmas tree today, and it felt like the whole city of Boston had the same idea. It was freezing, and I contemplated just buying a fake tree, but there is something absolutely satisfying about finding that perfect tree amidst rows of pines that evokes feelings of a child-like excitement and wonder for the Christmas season.  The clean winter smell of a freshly-cut Frasier Fir mixed with these tarts baking in the oven made for a perfectly fragrant and satisfying December Sunday.

These tarts have been a Christmas staple in our family since I was young.  The ingredient list is short, and the process fairly simple.  You will need a mini-tart pan to make these, but they’re pretty affordable.

The most time-consuming part involves shaping the dough into the tart pan, but even that is pretty straightforward once you get the hang of it.

If you’re more of a pecan person, you could easily swap out pecans for walnuts. These tarts will keep in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Enjoy!

Christmas Walnut Tarts

Yield: 40 tarts //  Prep: 1 Hour // Total time: 4 hours

Dough

• 6 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 sticks butter, softened
• 2 cups flour

Filling

• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped finely
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp. melted butter

• Wax Paper
• Tart pan
• Powdered sugar

For the dough: cream together the cream cheese and butter in a stand mixer until just combined. Add flour 1 cup at a time, and mix another 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl, until ingredients are just combined. Use a spatula to scoop the dough onto a piece of wax or parchment paper, and form into a rough ball.  Wrap the paper around the dough and chill for 2-4 hours.

For the filling: beat the eggs, brown sugar, nuts, vanilla, and butter with a whisk attachment until combined, approximately 1-2 minutes. Set aside or refrigerate until needed.

After dough has chilled, remove from fridge and let sit for 5 minutes.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease the tart pan. Pinch off a small piece of dough, and roll into a ball with your hands.  Place the dough ball into tart pan.  Then, make an indent in the center of the dough with your thumb, and working in a circle, push the dough up the sides of the tart pan. Repeat until you’ve filled the whole tart pan. Give the filling a quick mix to reincorporate the nuts that have fallen to the bottom, then spoon the filling into the tart pans, about 3/4 full.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until the dough just begins to turn light brown in color. Remove from oven and let sit for 2 minutes.  Then turn tarts out onto a wire cooling rack set over a cookie tray.  Repeat for the remaining dough/filling. Let tarts cool a bit, then sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.