Mini Strawberry Tarts with Balsamic Glaze

The idea for this recipe has been sitting in my head for a few days though I honestly don't know where it came from. I've always heard that strawberries and balsamic vinegar make a nice combination (sweet and tart, mmh mhh!) but I've never actually had it. Never mind that Aaron and I already have a variety of pastries in the fridge...always room for more, right? A lot of the beginning steps are done really close together so I suggest having your ingredients ready to go before starting

Mini Strawberry Tarts with Balsamic Glaze (makes 12)

For the crust:
1/4 cup vegan butter, melted
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar

For the strawberry filling:
2 cups frozen strawberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbls. flour

For the balsamic glaze:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tbls. brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350F. In a small pot dissolve the brown sugar in the vinegar. Bring to a boil, stir, and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, until the glaze coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and set aside.

While the glaze is simmering, microwave the strawberries for about a minute, until they are soft. Combine the strawberries (and any juice that gathered in the bowl) and sugar in a medium sized pot and heat until boiling. While the mixture is heating, mash the strawberries as best as you can with the back of a spoon. Reduce to a simmer and continue to stir and mash occasionally while you make the crust. The mixture will reduce quite a bit.

Combine the ingredients for the crust. Using your hands, flatten small balls of crust and press into a mini-muffin tin to make the tart shell. The higher you can get it up the sides of the well the better, as it will be easier to remove from the muffin tin when it's done. Bake for 10 minutes.

When the crusts are almost done, stir the flour into the strawberry mixture and cook for a few more minutes.

Scoop the strawberry mixture into the tart crusts and bake for 8 minutes.

Let the tarts cool in the muffin tin on a wire rack for a few minutes. Using a butter knife, gently pry the tarts loose from the wells and cool on the rack. Drizzle the glaze on top (it will absorb into the crust a bit). Enjoy!