Butter Tart Squares

My planning this week for baking didn’t quite work as planned. I had a different cookie to bake, but I just wasn’t inspired by it by the time it was time to bake. That happens sometimes, which is why having a well-stocked kitchen is a good thing. I usually have in mind some back up recipe, but this week I didn’t even make that! I had pinned this recipe recently, and this is the recipe that spoke to me this week.

The butter tart is a traditional Canadian treat, pastry topped with a buttery, brown sugar topping. I’ve been watching the winter Olympics, and since I usually watch Olympic coverage on the Canadian station that we get here, the Olympics make me think of Canada. A bit of a strange connection I suppose, but the mind works in mysterious ways.

These bars are basically butter and brown sugar with a couple of other ingredients thrown in. You don’t have to use a mixer to make these, but I ended up using the mixer to cut in the butter and to mix the filling. I never have the best luck with cutting in butter by hand, so I rely on the work of the mixer. It’s hard to know exactly when the bars are done; sugar browns quickly. The topping is bubbly when you take it out of the oven but will set as the bars cool. I forgot to spray my pan with nonstick spray, but that didn’t matter once I got the edges loose. These cookies are very sweet and sticky!

Butter Tart Squares

1 cup cold butter, cubed

¼ cup powdered sugar

2 cups flour

1/2 cup butter, melted

3 cups packed brown sugar

4 eggs

2 tablespoons white vinegar

1 tablespoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9” x 13” pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Make the shortbread crust: in a large bowl, combine the butter cubes, powdered sugar, and flour. Cut the butter into the ingredients with a pastry cutter until the mixture is crumbly and holds together when pressed. Spread the crumbs into the prepared pan and press into an even layer.

Bake for 10 minutes. Make the filling while the crust is baking.

Make the filling: in the same large bowl, combine the melted butter and brown sugar. Whisk or stir until incorporated. Add the eggs, vinegar, and vanilla and mix until the filling is smooth. When the crust comes out of the oven, pour the filling on top of the hot crust.

Bake for 20-22 minutes, until the filling is set. Cool before cutting into bars.

Recipe from The Recipe Rebel