The best butter tarts in Saskatchewan: A taste of tradition

Regina, Sask. — It’s a bold statement, but one that this writer stands behind wholeheartedly: Shirley Reiter makes the best butter tarts in Saskatchewan.

The never-fail pastry recipe found in ‘From Saskatchewan Homemakers’ Kitchens’ creates a beautifully flaky crust. Reiter says the recipe works well every single time. (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

A family tradition rediscovered

Growing up in Regina, Reiter spent her childhood in the warmth of a bustling kitchen.

Her mother, Phyllis, was a dedicated homemaker whose house was usually filled with the comforting scent of freshly baked goods.

“My mom was a stay-at-home mom and she was always baking,” Reiter said, remembering her days sitting in the kitchen and watching her mother’s hands moving swiftly to turn simple ingredients into treats that filled their home with irresistible aromas.

But when Reiter’s mother passed away, those cherished recipes went with her, leaving Reiter with only the memories of her mother’s cooking and baking.

Determined to preserve the flavours of her childhood, Reiter dug through old recipe books and tattered cards, searching for the beloved recipes that had been lost.

“She left too soon, so I had to find them,” she reflected.

One of the most important treasures she uncovered was the butter tart recipe her mother used each Christmas, tucked away in a cookbook from 1955 titled From Saskatchewan Homemakers’ Kitchens.

One of the most controversial discussions when it comes to butter tarts is the choice of filling: raisins or no raisins? Reiter chooses neither, instead opting to use currants. (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

This collection of recipes isn’t just a book — it is a time capsule of the province’s culinary heritage, filled with recipes passed down through generations.

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It’s the kind of cookbook that has become a staple in Saskatchewan kitchens where names are often written next to recipes.

“You put your name on there back in the day! You didn’t want it to not be good because everybody was critiquing it, right?” Reiter laughed as she flipped through the pages of the well-loved book. “Some of these have the greatest recipes.”

The pastry and butter tart filling recipe Reiter uses comes from a community cookbook published in 1955. The recipe was also used by both her mother and grandmother. (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

The pastry and the perfect filling

Reiter said making perfect butter tarts takes patience. She begins with the pastry, often preparing it the night before.

The butter tart filling itself is simple and unpretentious.

“It’s just butter, brown sugar, currants and lemon juice,” Shirley said. “It’s really not that hard… but again, it just takes time.”

Reiter said the key to her tarts is in the pastry.

“I think the difference is that it’s homemade pastry,” she said. “A lot of people say like, ‘Hey, why don’t you just buy them? It would be less work.’ Those are good, but they’re not as good as homemade pastry!”

Reiter says the best compliment she’s ever gotten about her pastry is from her partner’s 85-year-old father. “He is 85. He says it reminds him of what his mom used to make years ago.” (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

No two of Reiter’s butter tarts are exactly the same, which she believes adds to their appeal.

“You can go and buy the shells, and they all look perfect,” she says. “But when you roll out your pastry, it’s never always the same thickness all the way through. There will be some that are a little thicker than the others.”

It’s this very imperfection, the slightly uneven edges and the flaky layers, that give Reiter’s butter tarts their homemade charm.

“Do they look absolutely perfect? No, but they taste good and you can tell they’re homemade,” she said.

The extra time and effort she invests into making the pastry by hand doesn’t go unnoticed.

“The biggest compliment I ever got was from my partner’s dad,” Reiter reflected. “He is 85. He says it reminds him of what his mom used to make years ago, so that’s a testament to tradition.”

No two of Reiter’s butter tarts are exactly the same. It’s this very imperfection, the slightly uneven edges and the flaky layers, that give her butter tarts their homemade charm. (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

The age-old debate: Raisins or no raisins?

One of the most controversial discussions when it comes to butter tarts is always around the choice of filling: raisins or no raisins? Some people swear by the sweetness that raisins bring to the tarts, while others argue that raisins overpower the delicate flavours of the buttery filling.

Reiter, however, is a firm believer in using currants.

“Raisins are sweet; they’re a grape. A currant is actually a berry, and it’s more tart,” she explained. “The butter tarts are sweet without (raisins), so I don’t care for the raisins in there because it’s too over-the-top sweet.”

Currants, with their subtle tartness, provide a perfect balance to the rich, buttery filling, she said.

Shirley fills her pastry with butter tart filling

Reiter notes that it is important not to overfill the pastry shells. (Brittany Caffet/650 CKOM)

A legacy of love

For Reiter, making butter tarts is about more than baking — it’s about preserving a piece of her family’s history and passing it down to the next generation.

“I try to make the things my mom and grandma made because those were the things that mattered to them,” she said, a soft smile spreading across her face as memories of hours spent in the kitchen with the women who taught her how to bake gently surface.

With every tart, she not only keeps that history alive but shares it with those around her, ensuring that the sweet memories of her childhood will live on.

“So, my secret’s out,” Reiter says with a laugh. “It’s really not that hard. Anyone can do it!”