Tarte Au Chocolat

I can cross two things off of my wish list.  A tart shell pan with a removable bottom and twelve mini-tart shell pans.  The first was a present I bought for myself and the second, my mother surprised me with the mini-tart shell pans.  Yay!  My mom said she was so proud of me for my blog, she thought she would treat me.  With just one tiny string attached.  I have to bake something for her in the tart shell pans.  No problem there!  I have so many thing s I want to use them for!

                                  

So I have been on a chocolate kick for a while.  While going through my cookbooks I find beautiful pictures of tarts filled with shiny dark chocolate.  The pictures just make my mouth water.   I found a delicious and easy recipe in Mireille Guilliano’s “French Women Don’t Get Fat”, cookbook.  I have all of her books and I love the way she writes.  Mirielle gives insightful and healthy ideas on how to lose weight and how to feel good about you.   The recipe, Tarte au Chocolat was right up my alley.  Yes, I know, eating it all by myself isn’t a great way to lose weight, so I decided to share. 

Tarte au Chocolate starts with a crust recipe.  In Mirielle’s recipe, she suggests purchasing a store bought pie crust or making your own.  She didn’t include a recipe for it in the cookbook, so I went on a hunt to find a simple pate brisee crust.  I found the recipe in “The Martha Stewart Cookbook”, by Martha Stewart. The pie crust recipe was simple and it worked really well with the chocolate tart filling.

All I can say is yum! 

Pate Brisee

Makes two 8-to-10 inch tarts.

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

½ pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

¼ to ½ cup ice water

1. Put the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor.  Add the pieces of butter and process for approximately 10 seconds, or just until the mixture resemble coarse meal.  (To mix by hand, combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Using a pastry blender or two table knives, cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse meal).
2. Add ice water, drop by drop, through the feed tube with the machine running, just until the dough holds together without being wet or sticky; do not process more than 30 seconds.  Test the dough at this point by squeezing a small amount together.  If it is crumbly, add a bit more water.
3. Turn the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap.  Grasping the ends of the plastic wrap with your hands, press the dough into a flat circle.  This makes rolling easier that if the pastry is chilled as a ball.  Wrap the dough in the plastic and chill for at least an hour.
4. I only used half of the dough for this recipe.  I still have the other half in the freezer ready to use at a moments notice.

 

Tarte Au Chocolat

1 recipe pate brisee or pie dough (store-bought or homemade) for a 9-inch pie

6 ounces dark chocolate (70 to 80% cacao preferred), chopped

1/3 cup 2% or whole milk

1/3 cup heavy cream

4 tablespoons sugar

4 egg yolks

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1. Line a 9-inch tart with the pastry dough.  Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork and cover the dough with foil, crimping the foil over the edge of the mold.  Add dry beans or pellets and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove the beans or pellets and foil and cook for another 5 minutes or until the tart shell is lightly golden.  Remove from the oven and cool.
2. Lower the oven temperature to 275 degrees.  Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and melt in 45 second increments.
3. Meanwhile, place the milk, cream, and sugar in a small heavy saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat, whisking to dissolve the sugar.  Remove from the heat and add to the melted chocolate, stirring until smooth.  Set aside and allow to cool a bit before whisking in the egg yolks.  (This last step is a must!  If you don’t allow the mixture to cool, the eggs will scramble)
4. Pour the chocolate mixture into the tart shell and bake for 20 minutes or until the filling is just set.  Remove from the oven and cool before unmolding and serving.