"I came upon this recipe several years ago in Mother's kitchen," writes Barbara Wilkerson of Talladega, Alabama. "It is now my own family's favorite holiday treat."

　　Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 3 hr

　　

Ingredients

Makes 4 dozen

　　8 oz cream cheese, softened

　　2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened

　　2 cups all-purpose flour

　　2 large eggs

　　1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

　　2 cups chopped walnuts (8 oz)

　　

Special equipment:

2 to 4 mini-muffin tins

　　

Step 1

Beat together cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until smooth. Sift in flour and a pinch of salt and stir until mixture forms a dough. Divide dough into quarters, then chill, each wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.

　　

Step 2

Preheat oven to 350°F.

　　

Step 3

Make 12 balls from each piece of dough. Press each ball into bottom and up sides of a mini-muffin cup to form a pastry shell. Chill until ready to fill.

　　

Step 4

Whisk together eggs, brown sugar, and a pinch of salt until blended, then stir in walnuts. Fill each pastry shell with 1 teaspoon filling.

　　

Step 5

Bake in batches in middle of oven until filling is bubbling and pastry is light brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Run a sharp knife around edges of pastries, then transfer to a rack and cool.