Sandusky Sand Tarts: 100+ Year Old Recipe

Did you know that the Sandusky Sand Tart is the official dish of the Maritime Museum of Sandusky in Ohio? Neither do they. I'm at that point in the Covid-19 quarantine where I am creating signature dishes for historical sites and museums. This post was made possible by the Sandusky Library and Jeremy Angstadt who created and forwarded me the book scan. If you're local or out that way, be sure to give them a visit.

I chose this recipe because it was marked it the book, and I love getting recipe input from previous cooks. Sand Tarts were a popular turn of the century dish and are included in many Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish cookbooks.

The Sandusky House-Keeper (Sandusky, Ohio) 1888

Sandusky Sand Tarts

Ingredients:

- 2 Cups Sugar
- 1 Cup Butter (2 Sticks)
- 3 Cups Flour
- 2 Eggs, reserving 1 egg white for brushing on top
- Cinnamon
- Sugar
- Blanched Almonds

Instructions:

In a mixing bowl, cream together room temperature butter and sugar. Add the eggs, reserving one egg white. Mix in the Flour. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 1/8 of an inch thick. Cut into squares. Place sand tarts on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or grease. Brush the egg white and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on the tops. Press an almond into the center.  Bake in a pre-heated oven at 300 degrees F for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.

I made half the recipe and it produced about 20 3.5 inch cookies. The tarts spread a little while cooking so be sure to give them space on the pan. It tastes like a crunchy snicker doodle and would be very good with tea. I'm generally not a fan of crunchy cookies but these have a good flavor and texture. Thanks for coming to visit! I'm getting so stir crazy stuck in the house.