Brandy Butter Tarts (your new Christmas favourite)
Ben has been making this recipe for over twelve years. When a plate of these appear for the first time, you just know that the festive season is upon us and it's time to light the fire and enjoy the lead up to Christmas. A wonderful & utterly delicious alternative to a mince pie and a recipe that just has to be shared. More the merrier, especially at this time of year.
It was passed down to Ben by Gloria Beauchamp the partner of David Ritchie, the Canadian owners of Superyacht 'Apoise' that Ben was aboard for five years before opening the restaurant, that saw Ben travel around the world - from the North West Passage to the Galapagos.
Ben would always make these at Christmas onboard and loved them so much that he brought them back to the island. They always flew out of the restaurant kitchen, especially at our Christmas markets.
They were passed down to Gloria by her grandmother from Vancouver, who has been making them for 60 years, so we have some pretty big boots to fill and three or so generations to honour. The pastry is made with lard and is absolutely delicious but very filling (and not great for your cholesterol), so if you want a pastry that is slightly healthier & lighter, the pastry from the pumpkin pie recipe within our 'Lille Journal' works a treat too.
If you're not keen on brandy, you could swap it for another alcohol of choice (rum works beautifully) - they also work really well without any booze, if you'd prefer to make them alcohol free (we like to call the non boozy version - christmas tarts!)
RECIPE
Makes 24 tarts / Takes 1 hour to prep / 20 mins to Bake (worth every minute)