I made these to take to Madeleine’s first piano recital.  Pretty simple, and yummy.

 

The pastry

2 cups plain white flour

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut in cubes

1/4 cup water

Using a pastry blender (or your finger tips, but slower), blend the flour, salt and butter until the consistency of wet sand.  Slowly add the water until combined.  Roll out the dough on a floured surface until thin, then cut out circles using a cookie cutter or bowl of approximately 5-6″ in diameter.  Place the dough into medium-sized muffin tins and press down.  Chill the dough in the freezer for at least 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, make up the pumpkin filling.

 

Pumpkin filling

2 cups cooked pumpkin (I roasted kent pumpkin slices for 1 h at 180 C, 350 F)

1.5 cups cream

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

3 medium eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients in a mixer until smooth.  Fill the mix into each of the chilled pastry tarts and bake at 180 C, 350 F, for 20-22 minutes.  Let cool for about 30 minutes in the pans, then transfer to a cooling tray.  I served them with maple cream, which consisted of 500 ml (2 cups) cream, 1/4 cup maple syrup and a pinch of salt, whipped until thickened.