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Mixed nuts chocolate tartlets with sea salt- -12/21/13

Tonight we are going to Maily's and Tuan's for a holiday dinner and I am bringing these tartlets for dessert.  These tartlets are great for a holiday season because they look elegant and festive.  They are filled with mixed nuts then a layer of bittersweet chocolate ganache is spread on top, and then topped with a candied hazelnut, then sprinkled with sea salt.  The contrast of the bright white sea salt against the dark chocolate ganache is really beautiful and it has a nice contrast between sweet and salty.

The tartlets shell are made with a home made pate sucree.

They are crispy, buttery, sweet and

The tart can be baked a day ahead but the chocolate ganache should not be glazed until the day it is served or the sugar will melt off the candied nut on top.

Close look at the tartlets.

The tartlets are so good! The tart is not overly sweet, has a nice rich buttery shell, the filling is yummy and has a little crunch and the bittersweet ganache makes the flavors sing well together.

 

Preparation work..

yield: 1 9 inch tart or 6 to 8 tartlets (depending on size)

Ingredients:

For the nuts filling:

1/2 cup sugar

2/3 cup milk

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cup unsalted roasted mixed nuts

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 egg beaten

For the ganache:

2/3 cup finely chopped bittersweet chocolate

3 tablespoons half and half

12 candied hazelnuts

flake sea salt for garnish

 

1 batch of pâte sucreé

 

 

Note: Make the crab cakes first so they have time to firm up in the fridge before you cook them.  Allow at least 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Chopped the nuts

Don't over chop them, make sure they are still chunky

Add the butter, the sugar, milk, vanilla,  and salt in a small saucepan.

Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the chopped nuts.

add the cinnamon and stir to combine and set aside to cool.

When the mixture is completely cool, stir in the egg.

Take pâte sucreé dough out of the refrigerator and line your tartlet molds.

Fill the tartlets with the nuts mixture

Pre-heat the oven at 375 degrees.

Bake for 35 minutes or until the filling is firm and the dough is golden  brown.

Remove from the oven.

Un-mold the tart and let them rest on a cooling rack.

Put the chocolate and pour the half and half in a small sauce pan on medium heat.

 

Keep stirring and the chocolate is melted.

 

Glaze the top of the tartlet with a nice layer of chocolate ganache.  Let the ganache cool down and add a candied hazelnut in the center and sprinkle with sea salt.

Filed as: Tarts

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