Recipe: Mini Tartes au Sucre (French-Canadian Sugar Pies)

I've been wanting to try this kind of pie for a very long time, but I never had the right occasion.

Then, my brother, Lars D.H. Hedbor, got a novel published - The Prize - Tales from a Revolution: Vermont.  Tee hee.

He's doing a reading tomorrow evening, and I was asked to do refreshments for it.  Lars asked that they be slightly period and area appropriate.  One of this main characters is French-Canadian.  Boom.  Tarte au sucre.

Mini, because, well....

So, the verdict is that these little pies weren't exactly neat... but they are totally yummy.  Very sweet.  They are called Sugar pies, after all.  They were like pecan pies, without the pecans.  I'm glad I made them tiny.  I might top them with some whipped cream at the event.  I've read that is often done with this pie.

These would be prettier with a dollop of whipped cream, don't you think?

Try them if you want a fun French-Canadian treat!

Mini Tartes au Sucre

Pie crust for ~3 pies (I use ready-made pie crust - one and a half boxes for this recipe)
6 Tbsp flour
2 c dark brown sugar
1 1/2 c (1 can) evaporated milk (I used fat free)
4 Tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Cut pie crusts out into circles large enough to fit into mini muffin pans sprayed well with cooking spray.  Press circles into the mini muffin cups.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Stirring, stirring, stirring...

Boiled + extract!

In a sauce pan, combine brown sugar and flour.  Stir over medium heat until well combined, and then pour in the evaporated milk.  When the sugar and flour are dissolved in the milk, add the butter.  Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

Pour the filling into the crusts, being careful not to overfill.  Bake for 5 minutes at 400 F, then turn the heat down and bake for an additional 15-17.  (Mine over flowed some... any French-Canadian readers care to help me out here?)

I spooned the filling that overflowed back into the crusts the best I could