These are a very old Christmas cookie from southern United States, that are very popular in the United States. Not at all difficult to make they work up easily and make a beautiful presentation when given for a cookie exchange for just presented on your beautifully decorated table for a Christmas party.
Christmas cookies and cookie exchanges have become a tradition in the United States, and are as much a part of the holiday season as Christmas decorations and Santa Claus.
Try this speedy and easy treat for your holiday party and see if you don’t get rave reviews.
Ingredients:
for the dough you will need
1/2 cup Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1/2 cup butter
1 cup flour
For the filling
2 eggs
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup pecans, (24 pecan halves and the remainder chopped finely)
Preheat the oven to 350. Place a baking sheet in it, and preheat the sheet as well.
grease mini muffin pans with 24 places total
Cut cream cheese and butter into the flour to form a dough. 
Roll the dough out thinly
with a fluted pastry press or biscuit cutter, cut 24 rounds.
To Make Your Filling:
Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl
gradually beat in brown sugar
add vanilla extract, eggs and butter.
Reserving the 24 pecan halves, add chopped pecans
Place about a half teaspoonful of pecans in the bottom of each muffin cup
and cover with the filling til muffin cups are about at the halfway mark.
set a pecan half on top of each muffin cup.
Bake on the hot baking sheet for about 20 minutes until puffed up and set and
transfer to a wire rack to cool
*The cream cheese dough may also be used to make a variation of these, called Jam Tassies, in which the cream cheese dough is filled with raspberry or strawberry jam and topped with a grated chocolate.
