Tart Tamper Pastry Tamper Mini Pan Wood Wooden Shell Dough Muffin Metal by MSART for Making Muffin, Pecan Pies, Cheesecakes and Desserts.

A friend and I used the smaller side to make tassies (little tarts) for Thanksgiving dessert, pressing down a sour cream dough into mini muffin tin holes.p, and then adding fillings. It’s helpful to dip it in a little flour after pressing out each one, and to make sure the dough is cold. Easy to use, and the result was outstanding. We used mine, but I then ordered another one for my friend so she could have her own. We’ll definitely do this again.

I read the critical reviews which claim dough stuck to the tamper and it "was easier to do with my fingers." Well. As always, there's a right way to use this tool--and a lot of wrong ways. The key thing is to refrigerate the pastry dough thoroughly before use. Then briefly form balls just to fit in each mini muffin spot so you can still see the sides from above and your ball is no higher than the top of the pan. Using the tart tamper, gently press down, then ever so sparingly rock the tamper around and back and forth as you see the dough coming up all around. Adjust your movements so that the top of the pastry becomes an even height all around. Stop when your pastry is about 1/4-inch above the top of the pan. If your dough begins to stick, refrigerate it again for at least 15 minutes before using the tamper, especially if your hands have warmed the dough--you'll know more chilling is required if/when the balls get much easier to form in your palms as the fat content begins to soften. Tart tampers that don't have the same shape as the mini muffin pans are trickier (referring specifically to those with rounded bulbs, here)--this one, however, is exactly the correct tool for the process. There's absolutely no need to roll out the dough, so it stays delicately tender and flaky. It's more sanitary, as your hands have minimal contact with the pastry. And it's SO much faster. But learn how to use your tools properly--CHILL YOUR DOUGH, and keep it chilled. And take care of your tart tamper. Don't ever soak your wooden tamper in water, but sand it down with a very fine grit paper (240 grit or higher) if the grain rises from water exposure. Always sand with the grain, not against it, and don't forget to sand briefly around the bottom edge. Simply wipe it thoroughly clean after each use, and follow up by wiping again with a good butcher block oil; I prefer Boos, which is also sold here at Amazon and has great directions right on the bottle. This simple tart tamper is a lifesaver and could become a family heirloom. But the manufacturer should provide the directions for its proper use and care, as I've done here. (Btw, this is also how to care for a wooden rolling pin, another potential family heirloom.)

… for making little pastry desserts in mini muffin tin. Recommend.

I've been looking for a contraption like this to make my cupcake pies with. This helps me form perfect pie crust in the cupcake pans faster and efficient as opposed to me trying to shape it with my fingers, which takes forevr BTW.

I used this to make tart size graham cracker crusts in my mini muffin pans and it worked perfectly. I baked the crusts, then made a ganache with chocolate and heavy cream. Chilled it then filled the mini crusts, added 5 mini marshmallows to the top and broiled them to toasty perfection! Chilled again before removing from the pans and voila! adorable and tasty bite size s'mores desserts! I had a little extra crust mixture so put it into a muffin size bowl and used the larger end which worked perfectly too! Can't wait to use them for more tasty treats!

Had recipes I wanted to try, but could not find this item in stores. Thank you Amazon! It is very easy to use and clean up is a snap.

Story, easy to use, correct sizes

This is a sturdy piece of equipment. Its well made, should be durable, could be a bit smoother, but is as advertised. It also arrived promptly and well packaged. It is also utterly useless. I switched to rolling out the dough, cutting out circles and pressing it into the mini tart pans by hand. Its faster and does a better job. Total waste of money.