Chocolate Hazelnut Salted Caramel Tart Food

HAZELNUT SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE TARTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Place 6 mini tart shells on a baking sheet and set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine crust ingredients. Mix thoroughly to combine, then press mixture into tart shells (I used a half cup measurer to make a perfect indentation for my crusts!).
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, then allow to cool completely.
• To make the salted caramel, place a small saucepan over low heat. Add in sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar melts completely, about 8-10 minutes.
• As soon as your sugar is fully melted, remove from heat and add in butter. Whisk carefully until fully incorporated, then add in salt and 3 tablespoons heavy cream. Allow to cool until it's warm but not hot.
• Spoon caramel into the tarts until they're just shy of full. Sprinkle in all but 2 tablespoons of the hazelnuts. Place in freezer to chill for 10 minutes.
• Chop those remaining 2 tablespoons of nuts so they're finely chopped. Set aside.
• To make the ganache, heat 1/3 cup heavy cream in a small saucepan over low heat until scalding. Remove from heat, add in dark chocolate. and let sit for 5 minutes. After, whisk to combine. Mixture should be totally smooth and melted at this point.
• Remove tarts from freezer and spoon ganache on top. Sprinkle with remaining hazelnuts and finish with flakey sea salt!

CHOCOLATE CARAMEL TART

Steps:

• Prepare chocolate dough: In bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, confectioners' sugar and cocoa. Beat until smooth. Add egg yolk and vanilla, and beat until blended.
• Sift flour into dough mixture. Beat on low speed until combined. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of a 10-inch tart pan. (You can use a 9-inch pan, but the crust will be thicker and the caramel may take longer to set in step 4.)
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line tart with foil, and fill with dried beans, rice or pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights, and bake until pastry is dry and set, another 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Prepare caramel filling: In a large saucepan, bring sugar, water and corn syrup to a boil. Stir or swirl the pan occasionally, until mixture is a medium amber color, about 12 minutes. Remove from the heat. Caramel will continue to cook and darken off of the heat. Carefully but quickly whisk in the butter, cream, creme fraiche and salt until smooth (mixture will bubble up). Pour hot caramel into tart, and allow to cool and set, at least 1 hour.
• Prepare chocolate glaze: Place chocolate in a bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream to a boil. Pour hot cream over chocolate and whisk until chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth. Pour glaze over tart, tilting tart for even coverage. Refrigerate until tart is set, at least one hour, then sprinkle with a few granules of fleur de sel. Keep refrigerated until serving.

SALTED CHOCOLATE CARAMEL TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the butter and sugar in a food processor and process until pale. Add the cocoa, flour, egg and vanilla and process to a smooth dough. Press into the base and sides of a 26cm loose-bottomed, fluted tart tin to 5mm thick. Trim the edges and refrigerate until firm. Prick the dough with a fork and bake for 15 minutes or until the pastry is cooked. Set aside.
• To make the filling, place the cream and butter in a saucepan over medium heat until melted. Set aside. Place the sugar and water in a saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat to high and boil, without stirring, until dark golden and the mixture reaches 170°C (340°F) on a sugar thermometer. Remove from the heat and carefully whisk in the cream mixture. Return the pan to low heat and stir for 5 minutes or until thickened. Pour into the pastry shell and refrigerate until firm.
• To make the glaze, place the cream in a saucepan over low heat. Add the chocolate and stir until melted and smooth. Pour the chocolate over the caramel and refrigerate until firm. Sprinkle with salt and cut into wedges to serve.

SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE TORTE

Steps:

• Line the base of a deep, round 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin with a circle of baking parchment. Line the sides with one long strip that comes just above the sides of the tin - staple or paper clip where the strip overlaps to hold it in place.
• Crush the biscuits in a plastic bag or bowl with the end of a rolling pin. Stir into the melted butter, then evenly press into the bottom of the tin. Chill for 10 mins.
• Reserve 2 tbsp of the caramel. Stir the sea salt into the remainder and spoon into the centre of the biscuit base. Gently spread so the base is evenly covered but a visible 1-2cm border of biscuit remains around the edge. Chill for 20 mins while you make the chocolate layer.
• Gently melt the chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir 1 tbsp of the cream into the reserved caramel, then cover and chill until ready to decorate. Once the chocolate has melted, turn off the heat but leave the bowl where it is, and gradually stir in the remaining cream until you have a smooth, shiny, thick chocolate sauce. Sift in the icing sugar and stir in with the vanilla extract. Lift off the heat and let the mixture cool for 10 mins.
• Ladle or pour the chocolate mixture around the edge of the torte first, so it fills the biscuit border, sealing the caramel in the centre. Then ladle or pour in the rest and gently shake to smooth the surface. Chill for at least 5 hrs or up to 24 hours until firm.
• Remove the torte from the tin, then carefully peel off the strip of paper and transfer to a serving plate. Dot the chocolates on top. Spoon the reserved caramel-cream mixture into a small food or freezer bag. Snip off the tiniest tip of the corner to make a very small opening, then squiggle lines of caramel over the top. Chill until ready to serve. Scatter with a pinch or two of sea salt before serving, then thinly slice. Eat with a drizzle of single cream, if you like.

CHOCOLATE & HAZELNUT PRALINE TART

Steps:

• Make the pastry. Cream together the butter and sugar, then add flour and almonds. Bring everything together with the egg. If the pastry is very soft, chill for 20 mins. If not, roll out to fit a deepish 23cm fluted flan tin; if the pastry breaks, press scraps of pastry into the gaps, leaving a slight overhang. Chill for 20 mins.
• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Line the case with baking parchment and baking beans, then bake for 10 mins. Remove beans and cook for another 10 mins until golden.
• Meanwhile, toast the nuts in a dry pan until starting to brown. Scatter over 4 tbsp of sugar, cook until it caramelises, then tip nuts onto a baking tray lined with parchment. Leave to cool, then roughly chop. Over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate, butter and alcohol together, then set aside to cool slightly. Over the same pan, beat the egg, yolks and remaining sugar until pale and fluffy. Take off the heat, then fold in the chocolate mix.
• When case is cooked, remove from oven and turn the heat down to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Scatter most of the hazelnuts over the base, then tip in the chocolate mix, pressing it down slightly. Cook the tart for 15-20 mins until the chocolate has almost set. Leave to cool, then serve scattered with the remaining nuts. Can be made up to 1 day ahead.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT TART

Steps:

• Make crust and toast nuts:
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Invert bottom of springform pan (so that turned-up edge is underneath for easier removal of tart) and close side of pan onto bottom.
• Stir together crumbs, butter, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a bowl, then press onto bottom of springform pan. Bake crust in lower third of oven 7 minutes, then cool crust in springform pan on a rack.
• While crust bakes, toast hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan in upper third of oven, stirring once, until golden, about 7 minutes. Transfer to a plate and cool to room temperature.
• Make filling while crust cools:
• Bring cream to a boil in a 1- to 2-quart saucepan, then pour over chocolate in a heatproof bowl, whisking until chocolate is melted and smooth. Whisk in chocolate-hazelnut spread until combined, then whisk in nuts and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt.
• Pour filling onto cooled crust and put in freezer until just set, about 25 minutes. (Tart should not be frozen.) Remove side of pan before serving tart.