Did you know Ontario is home to two Butter Tart-themed trails and over a dozen Butter Tart specific events?
Excitement over this humble pastry has reached new heights — thanks in part to this New York Times article, but mostly because they’re delicious. Everyone has their own preference for these treats; whether it is runny or firm fillings, plain or with raisins, it is a passionate national debate.
Just recently, Bowmanville held their first annual Butter Tart Festival on March 4. Festival organizers were flabergasted to note that they had more then 10,000 people come through the gate! The 40 participating vendors sold over 40,000 butter tarts!
Like at most butter tart festivals, they had three different competitions happening throughout the festival, including best traditional tart, best fruit tart and best fancy tart. They also had a peoples choice award, that went to the vendor that sold the most tarts!
The 40 different vendors came from all across the region, including Kawarthas-Northumberland, Ontario’s butter tart capital and home to the official Butter Tart Tour.
They included: World’s Greatest Butter Tarts, Toasted Walnut, BOAA, Sugar and Spice Catering, Cupcake Goodness, Krumbs, Carla’s Cookie Box, Sweet Empire, Eat My Shortbread, Annina’s Bakeshop, Paradise Tarts, Tutter Barts, Doo Doo’s, Kawartha Butter Tart Factory, Village Cupcakery and Cafe, A1 Gluten Free Gals, Grandma’s Beach Treats, Betty’s Pies & Tarts, AWW Crumbs Custom Cakes, Dale’s Baking, Porky’s Grill, Tamis Tarts, 36 Kitchen, Brianna Sweet Treats, The Butter Tart Guy, Willow Tree Farms, Rob’s Good Food. Each vendor made sure to show up with their best tarts for the different competitions that were going on!
We were lucky enough to be asked to judge one of the categories — a perk of our work we never say no to!
And the Winners are……
Best Traditional tart: Village Cupcake and Cafe from Uxbridge!
Best Fruit tart: Grandma’s Beach Treat Tarts from Wasaga Beach!
Best Fancy tart (and peoples choice!): Dales Baking from Sauble Beach!
Don’t worry if you missed the first annual Bowmanville Butter Tart Festival. You have a chance to check out more festivals that are coming up!
- Annual Brooklin Butter Tart Festival is happening April 21, 2018 at 9 am.
- Ontario’s Best Butter Tart Festival is happening June 9, 2018 in Midland.
- Enniskillen Butter Tart Festival is happening July 14, 2018 at 9 am.
- Oshawa’s Butter Tart Festival is happening September 22, 2018 at 12 noon.
