Here is an easy recipe for pecan tassies that our family has been making for over 50 years. It's not the holidays if we don't have our tassies!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
For crust, combine cream cheese and butter until well blended. Add flour until a soft dough forms.
Roll dough into the size of small walnuts. Place balls of dough into a non-stick mini cupcake pan. Place tart tamper in flour. Shake off excess and press into dough with even pressure until dough rises just above the tamper. Remove tamper and gently press out edges of tart with fingers.
For filling, melt butter in small sauce pan. Stir in brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Chop pecans and divide in half. Place one half in a bowl and set aside. Add the other half to the filling mixture.
Using the chopped pecans that were set aside fill each tart with a small amount of nuts. Add filling mixture 3/4 full to the tart (do not over fill). Add any remaining nuts to top of tarts.
Bake 20-25 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from oven; cool in pan for a few minutes then remove tassies and continue to cool on cooling rack. If the filling bubbled over onto the pan use a toothpick to help remove tart from pan. Store in an airtight container.