The Dark Chocolate Tart offers a luxurious comfort food experience with a rich chocolate filling in crisp pastry, best served with crème fraiche. Key elements for success include using high-quality chocolate (70%-75% cocoa), a properly prepared pastry shell, and careful technique to achieve a silky texture. Testing baking times is advisable.
Serve these Christmas Pudding Souffles to you guests and you will instantaneously be seen as a culinary genius. People are always impressed by a served a souffle, in fact they are a lot easier than people imagine.
These French Apple Tarts are a real celebration of apples. When discussing fruit tarts, the British focus is as much on the pastry as the filling. The French aspect is all on the filling with the pastry been a necessary adjunct. That’s not to say that the pastry can be of poor quality, but its there to showcase the main product.
For these tarts we are using two distinct types of apples. Bramley apple for full on flavour, backed up with a dash of good cider. Green apples, Granny Smiths of French Golden delicious provide texture and a hint of freshness to the tarts. These tarts can be made the night before and stored in the fridge. The trick is to glaze and seal the apple with melted butter and lemon to stop the apple discolouring.
The first job is to make the apple puree. This needs to be cold before use so its an ideal job to do the night before you intend to make the tarts.
Peel and core the apples then cut into thin slices. Put the slices into a shallow pan with the butter then place the pan over a low to medium heat. Sprinkle the apples with the sugar, cider, and lemon juice, then pop on a lid.
Cook slowly, removing the lid and stirring from time to time. Once the apples have softened and become a puree remove the lid and cook for a further three or four minutes to dry the puree a little. Have a taste and add a dash of sugar if you think the puree needs it, but don’t let it become too sweet Scrape the puree into a clean bowl and let cool completely.
Find yourself a small plate approximately 12cm in diameter. Next cut some squares of baking paper just a little larger than the size of the plates.
Open the puff pastry and carefully unroll onto a chopping board. Place the plate onto one edge, then using the point of small knife cut around the plate for form a disk of pastry. Use a fish slice to lift the disc into a square of baking paper, then place a second square on top. Its important not to crush the edge of the pastry, or the cooked tart will rise unevenly.
Repeat this process, laying each disk on top of the first with a sheet of paper in between. Lift the stack onto the plate then refrigerate for ½- 1 hour.
Before you start, melt the 30g of butter in a small dish and work in 2tsps of lemon juice, keep that handy to glaze the finished tarts.
Cut a granny Smiths apple in half from the stem downwards, then cut out the core. Then take a slice off one side and starting at the side you have just cut slice the apple into 2mm thin slices. You can do this with a knife or use a vegetable mandolin as you wish. Only cut one or two apples at a time, or they will discolour before you can use them.
Take a disk of pastry, keeping the paper base in place and set in onto the chopping board. Set a mound of apple puree into the centre of the disk.
Lay a slice of apple on the pastry, sitting with one end on the puree and the other end about 6mm in from the edge of the pastry. Add a second slice, overlapping the first by approximately a third and keeping in from the edge. When you have completed the circle, tuck the last slice under the first take a small knife and gently score a grove into the pastry around the circle of apples. This will allow the pastry to rise up around the apples and form a rim. Brush the tart all over with the melted butter / lemon mix. Then transfer the tart onto a tray, and place in the fridge while you work on the next one.
To make the cider syrup simply pour the cider into a small pan and add the caster sugar. Bring the pan to the simmer and simmer gently until most of the cider has evaporated and you have a thick, but still runny syrup. Watch out as the syrup will thicken as it cools, a dash of hot water will thin it slightly if needed.
If you are going to cook the tarts at once straight away sprinkle heavily with icing sugar and place in a hot oven 180° for 35 minutes, then remove and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or until the pastry is crisp and golden brown and nice the apples have a nice colour. Whilst the tarts are cooking, put the mascarpone in a bowl and beat through the vanilla seeds.
Place the cooked tarts onto a serving plate and place a good scoop of vanilla ice cream, topped with chopped pistachios. Finish the place with a thread of cider syrup around the tart and a sprinkling of icing sugar laced with a pinch of ground cinnamon.
I have kept the finished tarts in the fridge for a couple of days without problem. The butter and lemon juice glaze on the apples prevents them from discolouring. You can also freeze the finished raw tarts, and even bake them directly from frozen. You need to be sure they are covered and don’t get damaged in the freezer though. If cooking from frozen allow about an extra 10 minutes cooking.
Enjoy Life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
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How to make – Cheats Chocolate Fondant. The classic restaurant chocolate fondant is a challenge for the pastry chef needing dexterity and exact timing to be served to perfection.
This version is much easier to make and is far more forgiving in cooking and serving as it is made in advance.
Vanilla Panna Cotta must be one of the easiest desserts to make, but perhaps harder to get exactly right. Success depends on using the best ingredients and taking care to blend them perfectly. Read on to learn just how to do that.
Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart. Taking things on from our Blind Baking Post. I am making the best use of some of the fruit from the garden, pears, and blueberries. Well to be honest the pears would have been from the garden but for our local contingent of deer. I had no idea they would take a liking to the pears, and there wasn’t a great deal there in the first place. Thankfully, the berries have done well this year and to – date they are still intact.
There is quite a lot to do here, but do give it a try. Not only is is a great Autumn dessert served warm with fresh vanilla custard but it also takes you through some classic skills essential to master tp produce great puddings and desserts.
Alternative Thinking.
Over the course of these blogs one of the things I would like to do is encourage you to look on recipes in a different way this will expand your thinking and simplify your cooking.
The first one of these is Ratio’s. Most baking recipes are simple a ratio of ingredients which of course dictates how they will react with each other and give us the result we require.
Frangipane uses one of the easiest ones to remember been equal quantities of butter, sugar, eggs, and ground almonds. Flour can also added according to way the mix is to be used and the finished texture you require. For this recipe I have chosen not to use any flour. This will give me a softer texture, almost pudding like which I like to compliment the fruit. If you would like the tart to cut cleanly and have a stiffer texture add the flour along with the almonds in the recipe.
The custard recipe is simple for each 100ml of liquid we need 1 egg yolk and 15g of caster sugar. You can then flavour the custard as wished but I am going for the classic vanilla using fresh vanilla pods. Other flavours that work well with this are, cinnamon, orange or cardamon.
You will be surprised how often a basic ratio appears in cooking. Once you have remembered the appropriate amounts and basic techniques the recipe almost becomes redundant. But let’s get cooking!
Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart.
Frangipane, often known as almond cream is a classic component of any pastry kitchen. I believe its invention is attributed to an Italian Marquis, Muzio Flangipani, I cannot guarantee that is the case but whatever its origins this type of paste can be found in dishes across Europe and of course our own Bakewell tart.
Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart. Serves 8
1 blind baked 23cm x 3cm tart case (not too dark a bake)
85g blueberries
4 small poached or tinned pears
1 recipe almond cream
Oven temp 165˚c
Cooking time 45 mins
Almond cream – (Frangipane)
155g unsalted butter
155g caster sugar
155g ground almonds
3 med eggs (cracked into a jug and whisked smooth)
½ tsp Vanilla essence
35g plain flour (optional)
If you are baking your tart shell at the same time, use the cooking time to organise your ingredients and make sure everything is at room temperature, particularly the eggs. My store cupboard was a quite cool, so I placed the sugar in the warmth of the top oven while the tart shell baked in the oven below. Remember to make sure your mixing bowl is not cold as well, aim for blood heat.
A food mixer makes this much easier but it can be made by hand, with a bit of elbow grease!
Take the eggs and break them into a jug then whisk well. Adding the eggs one by one as most recipes will require you to do can lead to the mix separating. Add the soft butter and sugar to the bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. Now begin to add the egg slowly beating it in as you go. Some recipes will tell you to add the almonds first, this is a bit of insurance against separating but makes the mix heavier. If you’re a bit nervous add a good pinch of almonds before the egg. Once all the egg is added fold in the almonds followed by the flour.
If at any time in the process the mix begins to look a little separated, stop adding any more ingredients and very gently warm the bowl in a little warm water. Gently fold the mix together and it should become smooth again. You can then proceed to finish the mix. Don’t whatever you do apply a lot of heat, if the butter begins to melt all will be lost. Carefully fold the blueberries into the mix then cover the bowl until the shell is ready.
When the tart shell has cooled down remove any pastry overlap if present and spoon the mix into the shell. Using the back of a spoon or small pallet knife level off the filling.
Lift each pear half from the syrup and drain well. Using a small sharp knife we are going to make cuts across the fruit from tip to the base of the fruit and all the way though.
Repeat these cuts on each of the pear halves. Then by pressing down lightly on the the fruit the slices will slide apart and form a fan. Place each pear half equally distant on top of the filling.
You are now ready to bake the tart. Have the oven pre-heated to 180˚c. place the tart into the centre of the oven then immediately turn the oven down to 165˚c and bake for about 45 minutes. Its not bad idea to rotate the tart in the oven after 25 minutes, but don’t leave the oven door open too long or the filling will sink. Don’t worry about the pears sinking into the filling. They are supposed to do that, if you have used flour in the filling they don’t sink down quite as much.
To test if the tart is cooked the best option is to use a probe thermometer and check the temperature of the centre of the tart. A reading of 95˚c will guarantee it ready. You can of course pop in a skewer, but the problem is the tart will be soft even when cooked. A light press in the centre of the tart should feel a little soft but without any suggestion of liquid.
If ready lift the tart onto a cooling wire and let cool down. Its nice to serve the tart just warm but if its too hot it can be a little stodgy.
Plenty of time now to make the custard or Crème Anglaise if you’re posh.
Fresh Egg Custard
Makes about 330ml
150ml Double Cream
150ml Full Fat Milk
1 Vanilla Pod split
25g Caster Sugar
3 Egg Yolks
For this we are using a half and half mixture of double cream and milk. Put the liquids into a pan where you can easily access the edges. Aim for a liquid depth of about 3-4cm. bring the pan up to a simmer then split the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds, adding both to the pan. Remove to the side of the stove and leave for 5 mins to extract the full flavour of vanilla into the milk and cream.
The best tool for cooking the custard is a heatproof silicone spatula. Been flexible it cleans the sides and bottom of the pan helping to prevent the custard curdling or burning. I would always use a probe thermometer to know when the custard is ready. Chefs can tell by the texture of the custard. They do it every day and even than sometimes get it wrong. Too much heat and the yolks cook hard and separate from the liquid. You will have sweet, scrambled egg! Have a clean bowl and sieve ready to receive the cooked custard.
Separate the egg yolks and sugar into a stainless or pirex bowl and beat well with a wire balloon whisk, the sugar should melt into the egg yolks and produce a thick fluffy mixture. Don’t throw the white away, put then into a clean container and freeze them for a future meringue or souffle.
Slowly pour the hot cream on top of the egg and sugar mixture mixing continually
Return the mixture into the pan and place on the heat stir carefully with the spatula Work backwards and forwards covering the whole base of the pan, then run the spatula around the edge.
Cook the mixture until it starts to thicken on the back of the spoon then begin to test the temperature. Take care not to touch the sides or bottom of the pan with the probe and produce a false reading. We need a temperature of 82˚c to have cooked the custard and produce a nice coating consistency.
When it’s ready immediately strain the mixture through the sieve into the cold bowl to stop it overcooking in the hot pan.
Cover the bowl with cling film to avoid a skin forming and place to cool ready for use. Refridgerate if you have made the custard well beforehand.
The tart can be returned to a warm oven if it has completely cooled down. it’s no problem to make the tart in the afternoon, for use in the evening. Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge, but it does make it a little heavier in texture.
To reheat pre-made custard sit the bowl in a pan of warm but not anywhere near boiling water, Stir the bowl to lift the custard from top to bottom until warm though. Do not allow the bowl to get too hot or all your hard work will be lost.
When you are ready to serve slice the just warm tart into wedges by cutting between the pears. dust with icing sugar and place onto warm plates with a generous amount of warm fresh custard. Then tuck in!
Enjoy life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
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©John Webber. 2023