Dessert Nut Cups

This recipe might be better called Mini Pecan Pies. The immediate review from our neighbor is that these treats are melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The crust is delicious and rich. The filling is sweet and nutty. And the single-serving size makes this a perfect package. These Dessert Nut Cups make a delicious dessert that can be easily be made ahead for any occasion.  

The recipe calls for using a mini-muffin pan to make 24  pies. I do not have mini-muffin pans, so I just used a standard muffin pan making 12 pies. I think that the change worked out just fine. I did use paper muffin liners so that the pies would not come apart when removing from the pan. 

Dessert Nut Cups 

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 8 ounce softened cream cheese
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. melted butter
• dash of salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Mix the softened butter, cream cheese, and flour. Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Divide the dough into 24 balls (for a mini-muffin pan) or 12 balls (for standard muffin pan). Press each ball into muffin cup. Mix the remaining ingredients and spoon into muffin cups. Sprinkle a few more pecans on top of filling. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Then reduce heat to 250 and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Enjoy!