When it comes to Canadian icons, butter tarts are right up there with Casey and Finnegan. But for something so simple, butter tarts can go so wrong. Too sweet, too much crust, too gummy, the list goes on. And while your best bet is to purchase from a business that specializes in butter tarts, is it possible to find a decent butter tart at your grocery store?

I approached tart artisan (or is that “tartisan?”) Eric De Garie, owner of Eric’s Handcrafted Butter Tarts. His creations are considered among the best butter tarts in Toronto. When I asked Eric what’s at the heart of a good butter tart, he said the dough must submit to the filling. Meaning, the crust should never take centre stage.

Eric also said that quality butter tarts are made with maple syrup, agave or honey. Most, if not all, commercial butter tarts in Ontario are made with high fructose corn syrup, which Eric said is a no-no. Having said that, I grew up on corn syrup as a child of the seventies. In fact, my mother used to put a nipple on a bottle of BeeHive corn syrup to nurse me and I turned out just fine. Aside from the fact I needed dentures by kindergarten.

Eric kindly made time in his baking schedule to help me taste test seven commercial butter tarts. I kept the brand names a secret. I also made a batch of homemade butter tarts to ramp up the drama. How would Eric rank my version against the others? And would any butter tarts leave us bitter? Read on to find out!

1) The Worthy Crumb, $6.99 for 6

I got these at my local Rabba store, not the first place that comes to mind for buying quality baked goods, although you can usually find me there late on a Saturday night, buying ice cream and chocolate bars. For health reasons, of course.

Tasting notes: “This has a lot of dough and is low on filling,” Eric said. “It has a good gel and a nice glossiness, but that’s coming from the corn syrup.” I agreed the dough took over and there wasn’t much taste to the filling. It looked good but lacked personality. Something often said to me during my dating years.

Verdict: Not worthy.

2) Baxter’s, $7.99 for 6

I got these tarts at Longo’s. They looked homemade with their wavy, imperfect crust, but I also know robots are very clever these days.

Tasting notes: “Again, there’s too much crust,” Eric said. “That’s usually a sign of a cheap tart – they spend more on the crust and less on the filling.” I thought it had too much crust as well. The filling was runnier, too. Overall, I agreed. This was one cheap tart. Which was also often said to me during my dating years.

Verdict: Back to the kitchen, Baxter’s.

3) Farmer’s Market, $7.00 for 9

Farmer’s Market baked goods are usually hit or miss. Sure, they look good, but anything called “Farmer’s Market” while being sold under the fluorescent lights of a box store while White Snake’s “Is This Love?” plays from the overhead speakers screams of inauthenticity.

Tasting notes: “The filling is darker with this one,” Eric noted. But it was the same issue as before for him: too much dough. I thought the dough was a bit saltier so it was a nice contrast to the sweet filling. But that was about all it had going for it. And it was getting harder to distinguish the tarts from one another. We both started to wonder: What if all commercial butter tarts are produced at the same facility?

Verdict: It wasn’t love.

4) Fresh Market, $4.77 for 6

I got these at Walmart. They looked like a house brand, but I reminded myself to keep an open mind when buying Walmart brands. Their Great Value Mac and Cheese and chocolate Easter bunny fared surprisingly well in my other test tests.

Tasting notes: “This one has that ‘doughy-dough,’” Eric said. (Side note: Doughy-Dough was my nickname as an overweight adolescent.) But he felt the filling was more substantial. Did the raisins add a bit of liquid, he wondered? I didn’t like this one at all. It left an aftertaste in my mouth. It could’ve been the xylanase.

Verdict: Not so fresh.

5) Homemade

I found this recipe in my old-school, coil-bound United Church of Canada cookbook. If there’s one thing church women know, it’s how to make butter tarts. And percolated coffee. So how would my tarts stack up?

Tasting notes: “You can tell this one has a different filling,” Eric said. “It’s not bad, unless I’m getting used to the corn syrup. There’s a good ratio of crust to filling. No maple syrup, but the best so far.” I have to say, I was impressed. The crust was light and layered. And the filling had more depth of flavour, likely on account of the cream and butter.

Verdict: The only thing that would make this tart taste better is a cup of percolated coffee.

6) Grandmother’s Bake Shoppe, $5.99 for 8

I bought this brand at my local No Frills. The tarts were packaged in a box and individually wrapped, which was a nice bonus. They slide into a lunch bag, or pocket, more conveniently that way.

A Grandmother's Bake Shoppe butter tart cut in half.

Tasting notes: “The dough is pale and barely cooked,” Eric said. “But I like the filling-to-dough ratio. This one is the tastiest so far.” (At this point, I started to sweat. Was Grandmother’s going to beat my tarts?) I thought these tarts had a nice crust on the top and felt the closest to homemade. It was a definite contender.

Verdict: Granny got me nervous.

7) Farm Boy, $6.99 for 6

These tarts look suspiciously like Baxter’s. How did I know they weren’t the same and slapping on a different label? At this point, I started to question everything I had believed about butter tarts.

Tasting notes: “The filling looks good,” Eric observed. Then he tasted it. “No,” he said with a clear shake of his head. “This is very bland and the crust is too thin.” I agreed the filling was bland. Eric was making me realize how many butter tarts are all about the sweet and very few about the actual flavour. It was one of those “dark night of the soul” revelations.

Verdict: Farm Boy, you got some growing up to do.

8) Compliments, $6.99 for 6

Compliments is Sobey’s house brand. I haven’t had much success with the brand in the past. So I didn’t have high hopes.

Tasting notes: “This is not a favourite,” Eric said. “The filling’s not good. Not good at all.” I thought there was too much crust. There was also a distinct molasses flavour. I don’t want molasses in my butter tarts. It’s like when annoying relatives show up unexpectedly on your doorstep.

Verdict: There were no compliments to be had.

I left it to Eric to decide the winner and he chose my homemade tarts. Score one for the United Church! In terms of the commercial brands, we both picked Grandmother’s Bake Shoppe as the best. In terms of the worst, Eric picked Farm Boy and I picked Compliments.

Before I left, Eric graciously gave me a package of his butter tarts to try. I’m glad his tarts weren’t in the running because the others wouldn’t have stood a chance. Eric’s were butter tart heaven. The crust was crisp with a uniform thickness and the maple syrup flavour shone through in the filling.

Eric's Handcrafted Butter Tart cut in half

Clearly, Eric knows what he’s doing. Find out more about his tarts, and where you can find them, by checking out his Instagram and Facebook accounts. Thank you, Eric! I’ll never look at a butter tart with ignorance again.

For anyone who’s interested, here’s the butter tart recipe from the United Church cookbook, as well as the recipe I used for the pastry.

Did I miss your favourite brand of butter tarts? Leave a comment and spread the word. Like buttah.