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Sweet Tartlet Shells

For this recipe you will need two mini-muffin pans, each containing twelve 1 3/4 x 1-inch cups.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    Makes 48 tartlet shells

Ingredients

2

1/4 sticks (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter

3

cups all-purpose flour

3

/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1

/2 teaspoon salt

3

large egg yolks

3

tablespoons ice water

1

teaspoon vanilla

Need to make a substitution?

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Cut butter into bits. In a bowl with a pastry blender or in a food processor blend or pulse flour, confectioners' sugar, and salt until combined well and add butter, blending or pulsing until mixture resembles coarse meal. In a small bowl whisk together yolks, ice water, and vanilla until combined well and add to flour mixture, tossing with a fork or pulsing until incorporated. Form dough into a ball and divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into a ball and flatten to form disks. Chill disks, wrapped separately in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour and up to 1 week.

    Step 2

    Preheat oven to 400°F.

    Step 3

    Form 1 dough disk into twenty-four 1-inch balls, keeping remaining disk wrapped and chilled. Press dough balls into bottoms and up sides of twenty-four 1/8-cup mini-muffin cups (about 1 3/4 inches across top and 1 inch deep). Trim any overhang with a knife and prick bottoms of shells with a wooden pick. Chill shells 15 minutes, or until firm. Bake shells in middle of oven 12 minutes, or until golden, and cool in cups on racks. Gently loosen shells with a knife and remove from cups, reserving shells for Chocolate Raspberry Bites .

    Step 4

    Make more shells (for Lemon Meringue Bites ) in same manner but after loosening shells do not remove them from cups. Tartlet shells may be made 2 days ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.