Lazy Butter Tart Recipe

ByDonnalea
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This easy butter tart recipe is a delicious twist on the traditional butter tart recipe.

An easy shortbread-like base is covered with a gooey topping made with butter, brown sugar, eggs and raisins then baked until perfectly golden to create a dessert bar that tastes just like a butter tart.

What a fantastic way to enjoy festive butter tarts without all the fuss.

one lazy butter tart bar on a white plate

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Butter Believe This Is The Best Butter Tart Recipe

  • This tried and true recipe is a cherished family favorite passed down from my Aunt Norma, who always made it for her festive Christmas dessert tray.
  • Perfect for busy days, or holidays, this lazy recipe has minimal prep with just a few pantry staple ingredients.
  • These butter tart squares deliver the rich, buttery sweetness of traditional butter tarts in a super easy format—no individual tart shells required.
  • The 8×8” pan makes 16–20 pieces, ideal for potlucks, holiday gatherings, or a family treat everyone can enjoy.
ingredients assembled in a clear baking dish to make the shortbread base for lazy butter tart bars
the base ingredients mixed together in a pile in a clear baking dish to make lazy butter tart bars
pressing the shortbread base into a clear baking dish to make lazy butter tart bars

Sweet Simple Ingredients

For the Crust: Butter or margarine, all purpose flour, and powdered sugar create a simple, crumbly base.

For the Filling: Brown sugar, butter, raisins, eggs, vinegar, and vanilla combine for a rich, gooey topping. Use light or brown sugar for this recipe.

How to Make Butter Tart Bars

  1. Prepare the base right in the pan. Press and bake. Cool.
  2. Melt butter, add remaining ingredients. Pour over cooled base.
  3. Bake as directed in the recipe below.
  4. Cool completely before slicing.
ingredients in a clear bowl to make lazy butter tart bars
the filling for lazy butter tart bars in a clear mixing bowl, and the baked and cooled shortbread base in a clear baking dish
the filling for lazy butter tart recipe being poured over the shortbread base
the filling for lazy butter tart bars on top of the baked and cooled base

Serving and Storing Butter Tart Squares

Serve these tasty morsels at room temperature. They do not need to be refrigerated, however I do and cover them in an airtight container. Place cool on your dessert tray and they will be perfect to serve once your guests arrive.

These lazy butter tart bars freeze amazingly well in an airtight container for about 3 months.

lazy butter tart bars on a red plate

I hope you love these lazy butter tart squares as much as I do. Please leave a rating and comment below.

5 from 1 vote

Lazy Butter Tart Recipe

Servings 16 servings
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Total 50 minutes
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This lazy butter tart recipe is a delicious twist on the traditional butter tart. Perfect for the holidays!

Equipment

  • 8×8 inch pan
  • mixing bowl

Ingredients
  

  • ½ cup butter or margarine
  • 1 cup flour
  • 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1½ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup butter or margarine
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 Tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350˚F
  • In an 8×8" baking dish, combine ½ cup butter, the flour and powdered sugar together. Mix with a pastry blender or your fingers until crumbly. 
  • Press evenly into the pan and bake for 5 minutes. Allow to cool on a cooling rack while preparing the topping.
  • In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, ¼ cup butter, raisins, eggs, vinegar and vanilla. Mix together well.
  • Pour over prepared base and bake for 30 minutes.
  • Cool completely. Cut into 16 squares or 20 rectangular pieces.

Notes

  • It is helpful to line the pan with parchment paper first for easy removal. And this makes the squares far easier to slice.

REPIN this Lazy Butter Tart Recipe

lazy butter tart recipe squares stacked on a red plate, with a title
one lazy butter tart square on a white plate with writing
lazy butter tart recipe bars stacked on a red plate, with writing
one lazy butter tart bar recipe on a white plate with a title
one lazy butter tart bar recipe on a white plate, and the filling being poured over the shortbread base, under the title

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