Salted Caramel Chocolate Tarts Food

SALTED CARAMEL-CHOCOLATE TART

Steps:

• Crust:
• Whisk cocoa, sugar, salt, and 1 2/3 cups flour in a medium bowl. Add butter and toss to coat. Using your fingers, smash butter into dry ingredients until it nearly disappears (you shouldn't see any large bits) and mixture holds together when squeezed-you're working it more than you would pie dough. Make a well in the center and add yolk and milk. Using a fork, gradually incorporate flour mixture until you've got a shaggy dough. Knead a couple of times in bowl until no dry spots remain and dough is smooth. Flatten into a 3/4"-thick disk, wrap tightly in plastic, and chill until firm, about 2 hours. (You can make the caramel filling during this time.)
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Let dough sit 5 minutes to soften slightly. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to a 14" round about 1/8" thick, dusting with more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Lift dough on one edge and throw a pinch of flour on surface. Slide bottom of tart pan under dough, positioning it roughly in the center. Fold in edges of dough so it's resting fully on insert; place inside tart ring and unfold edges so they gently slump against sides of pan and excess dough is hanging over the edges. Press dough firmly into bottom of pan with floured hands, then use a straight-sided measuring cup to firmly press sides of dough into grooves and up sides of pan. Roll pin over top edge of pan to shear off excess dough flush with pan. Reserve dough scraps for patching any potential cracks later. Prick bottom of dough all over with a fork and chill in freezer until very firm, 10-15 minutes.
• Place tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet and line with a sheet of parchment paper or foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans and bake until edges of crust are set and starting to look dry, 12-15 minutes. Carefully lift parchment with weights. Patch any visible cracks with reserved dough. Return crust to oven and bake until firm and dry all over, 18-22 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
• Filling:
• Bring sugar, cream of tartar, and 1/3 cup water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-low, stirring with a heatproof spatula until dissolved. Cook, swirling pot often but not stirring, until mixture turns deep amber and wisps of smoke rise from the surface, 8-10 minutes. Remove caramel from heat and immediately stir in butter a piece at a time until smooth (be careful; mixture will sputter). Gradually stir in cream, then add salt. Transfer caramel to a heatproof measuring glass (you should have about 1 1/2 cups). Let cool until warm.
• Pour caramel into cooled tart shell. Chill until caramel is set, at least 1 hour.
• Ganache:
• Place chocolate, cream, and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water). Stir with a heatproof spatula until ganache is smooth, about 5 minutes. Let cool until thickened enough to hold an indentation from a spoon.
• Remove tart from refrigerator and scrape ganache over caramel. Using a spoon, gently work ganache over surface, creating decorative swooshes and swirls. Sprinkle with sea salt; let sit until ganache has lost its sheen, 10-15 minutes.
• Do Ahead
• Dough can be made 2 days ahead; keep chilled. Crust can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature. Caramel filling can be made 3 days ahead; cover and chill. Microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring in between, just until pourable. Caramel-filled tart can be made 1 day ahead; once it's set, cover and keep chilled. Tart can be assembled 1 day ahead. Chill until ganache is set, then cover loosely. Let sit at room temperature 15 minutes before slicing.

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 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 & SALTED CARAMEL TART

Steps:

• To make the pastry, whizz the hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Add the flour, icing sugar and butter, and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and 1-2 tbsp cold water, and pulse until the dough comes together. Tip the dough out and flatten into a disc, then wrap in cling film and chill for 30 mins.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to line a 23cm loose-bottomed, deep tart tin. Trim the edges and prick the base with a fork, then line with baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Bake for 20 mins, then carefully remove the baking beans and parchment and bake for a further 5-10 mins until light golden. Allow to cool.
• Meanwhile, make the salted caramel. Tip the sugar into a small pan, add 1-2 tbsp water and heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Increase the heat and cook until the sugar turns to an ambercoloured caramel. Reduce the heat and add the butter, cream and golden syrup, and stir until the sauce is smooth and thickened. Remove from the heat and add the salt. Allow to cool for a few mins, then spread onto the tart base. Scatter with chopped hazelnuts and set aside.
• For the chocolate filling, melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth, then remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, egg yolk and caster sugar for about 6 mins until thick and pale. Fold in the melted chocolate and cocoa, then pour into the tart case. Transfer to a baking sheet and cook for 20-25 mins or until set and the top has formed a crust. Allow to cool to room temperature before serving in slices.

SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE GANACHE TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the crust, whisk to combine the flour, cocoa powder and salt; set aside.
• In another bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the egg yolks and vanilla and mix until combined. Little by little, add the dry ingredients until incorporated. The dough may look crumbly, but it should come together easily when you pinch the dough between two fingers.
• Press the dough out into a tart pan. Prick all over with a fork and put into the freezer for 10 minutes. Bake chilled crust for 15 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack.
• For the caramel, place the sugar, corn syrup and salt in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium high heat. Stir to combine, but onces the mixture begins to bubble stop stirring for the remainder of the cooking process. The sugar will first turn clear, then it will noticeably start bubbling and eventually take on color. Continue to cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer inserted into the syrup reads 340°, stir in the butter. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully (watch the sputtering) add the heavy cream and vanilla. Pour the caramel into the cooled crust and refrigerate for about 3-4 hours or until set.
• To make the chocolate ganache, heat the heavy cream to a simmer, then pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for 60 seconds, then stir until smooth. Pour the chocolate ganache over the caramel tart and refrigerate for a few hours until set.
• To serve, cut into slices and garnish with sea salt.