Holiday Teatime Treats
Submitted by onefastmechanic
Miniature cream cheese tassies filled with apricot fruit filling, nuts, and vanilla in a buttery pastry cup. Bite-sized holiday cookies baked in mini muffin tins.
YIELD
48 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
25 minREADY
55 minThese bite-sized cookies are the kind of thing that disappears from a holiday cookie tray first. A tender cream cheese pastry shell pressed into mini muffin cups holds a sweet apricot filling studded with chopped nuts.
The dough is basically a cream cheese pie crust: softened cream cheese and butter beaten with just a touch of sugar and flour. It’s soft enough to press into tiny cups with your thumb but bakes up flaky and golden around the edges.
The filling sets up almost like a custard, with eggs binding the apricot fruit filling and nuts together into a soft, scoopable center. Each one is just two bites of buttery pastry and sweet, jammy fruit.
Pro Tips
- Soften the cream cheese and butter completely before mixing, otherwise you’ll get lumps in the dough
- Use the back of a small spoon or your thumb to press the dough evenly into the bottom and up the sides of each cup
- Don’t overfill. The filling puffs slightly as it bakes
- Cool completely in the pan before removing so the pastry doesn’t crack
Variations
- Swap the apricot filling for cherry, blueberry, or raspberry pie filling
- Add a teaspoon of almond extract to the filling for a more pronounced flavor
- Dust the cooled tassies with powdered sugar for a festive finish
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃).
Beat cream cheese, butter and 2 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl with electric mixer until fluffy.
Stir in 2 cups flour to make soft dough.
Divide dough in half and shape each piece of dough into about 24 (1") balls.
Press balls into bottom and up side of ungreased miniature (1¾ inch) muffin cups.
Set aside.
TO MAKE FILLING:
Beat ½ cup sugar, eggs, ¼ cup flour, vanilla and apricot filling in medium bowl with electric mixer until blended.
Stir in nuts.
Spoon evenly into pastry-lined muffin cups. Bake at 350℉ (180℃) for 25 to 30 minutes or until filling is set and crust is golden.
Cool completely in muffin cups on wire racks.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
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