Free Form Tart Shells Recipes

THREE INGREDIENT MINI TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese.
• Gradually add flour until well mixed.
• Form into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Remove from fridge. Roll into 2-inch balls and place in 24-cup miniature muffin tin .
• Preheat oven to 350 F or 325 F for a dark pan .
• Use fingers to smash balls into tart shell shape. Fill shells with approximately 2 cups of filling, as desired. Depending on filling, the filled shells are baked from 15 to 25 minutes.
• Unfilled shells can be baked for 5 to 10 minutes.

TART SHELL

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar in a mixer with paddle. Slowly add egg yolks, beaten egg half, and vanilla. Add flour and mix until just combined. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours. Remove from refrigerator, unwrap and roll on a floured surface into a 3/8-inch thick circle. Drape into an 11 or 12-inch tart pan and press into corners. Line pastry with parchment paper and fill with dried beans or pie weights and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes until light brown. While still warm, remove weights and parchment paper and brush slightly with a beaten egg white, taking care not to use too much and to only brush the inside of the shell. Let tart shell rest at room temperature until ready to fill.;

SWEET TARTLET SHELLS

Steps:

• 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.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• 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 .
• 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.

SUPER EASY TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Mix ingredients until a dough forms.
• Divide dough into 8 equal parts.
• roll out and press into standard size muffin tins.
• bake at 475 about 8 to 10 minutes or until golden.
• Stuff with whatever you like.

CREAM CHEESE TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Blend cream cheese and butter or margarine. Stir in flour just until blended. Chill about 1 hour. This can be made ahead and chilled for up to 24 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Shape dough into 24 one-inch balls and press into ungreased 1 1/2 inch muffin cups (mini-muffin size) to make a shallow shell. Fill with your favorite filling and bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust is light brown.