Triple Threat Chocolate Tart

Total Time3

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: tarts

Servings: 10

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

Chocolate tart

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (202 grams)
3 tablespoons cocoa powder (15 grams)
½ cup powdered sugar (65 grams)
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup cold butter, cut into small chunks (170 grams)
1 large egg yolk
4 tablespoons heavy cream (62 ml)

Caramel

1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
½ cup heavy cream (125 ml)
¼ cup butter, cut into small chunks (57 grams)
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ cup chopped roasted peanuts (70 grams)

Peanut butter mousse

1 cup heavy cream (250 ml)
1 cup creamy peanut butter (264 grams)
1 cup powdered sugar (130 grams)
8 ounces cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ganache

4 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup heavy cream (125 ml)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Make the chocolate tart dough. Combine all-purpose flour with cocoa powder, powdered sugar, salt, with butter in a food processor or in a large bowl. Mix until the butter is incorporated and the mixture resembles coarse sand. Add 1 egg yolk and heavy cream and mix just until the dough comes together. Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or until firm.
Remove the dough from the fridge and roll until it's ¼-inch thick. Place the dough into a tart pan, pressing down the dough onto the pan. Place a parchment paper on top with baking weights such as beans or rice. Bake the tart for 20 minutes. Remove the weights and paper and continue to bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the caramel. Heat granulated sugar in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat. Melt the sugar until it starts to become amber brown. Add the heavy cream and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in butter and sea salt, stirring until the butter has melted. Add chopped peanuts and let cool slightly.
Pour the peanut caramel into the chocolate tart. Let cool.
Make the peanut butter mousse. Whip heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Beat together peanut butter with powdered sugar, and cream cheese until smooth. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Add ⅓ of the whipped cream and mix until incorporated. Fold in the remaining whipped cream until smooth.
Spread the peanut butter mousse on top of the caramel in the tart. Chill the tart in the fridge for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Melt semisweet chocolate with heavy cream in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir to combine and continue to microwave at 20 second intervals until the chocolate has melted, stirring well each time.
Spread the chocolate ganache on top. Let rest for 30 minutes or until the chocolate sets. Serve.

Notes

Now back to the chocolate tart. Roll out the dough until it's about ¼ inch thick and transfer it to your tart pan. To easily transfer the dough without tearing it, take the bottom insert of your tart pan and slide it under the dough. Carefully lift up the insert and place it into the tart shell. Make sense? Good.

Blind bake the tart shell (meaning bake it with weights) to prevent it from puffing up. Remove the weights for the last ten minutes and continue to bake. I would normally say bake until golden brown but because of the cocoa, it's already brown, haha!

Cool the tart shell completely.

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Bake chocolate crust

This triple threat chocolate tart is not for the weak. It's that one dessert that gets you weak in the knees because it's so rich and heavenly. It's a lot of work, but it's worth every second.

Let's start by making the chocolate tart crust. The crust is the only part of the pie that needs to be baked.

Mix together all-purpose flour with cocoa powder, powdered sugar, salt, and cold butter using a pastry cutter. Blend in the butter until it's well incorporated and the mixture looks like coarse sand. Then, add the egg yolk and heavy cream and knead the dough until it becomes one cohesive mass.

You can also prepare the dough in the food proce s sor. Just be sure not to overmix the dough, or it can become tough. I like to pulse the dough about 5-6 times before kneading it a couple of times by hand.

Wrap up the dough and chill it in the fridge; chilling the dough before baking it will help prevent it from shrinking while baking. You can also prepare the dough the day before and let it chill overnight.

When ready, roll out the dough until it's about ¼ inch thick and transfer it to your tart pan. To easily transfer the dough without tearing it, take the bottom insert of your tart pan and slide it under the dough.

Carefully lift the insert and place it into the tart shell. Make sense? Good.

Blind bake the tart shell (meaning bake it with weights) to prevent it from puffing up. Remove the weights for the last ten minutes and continue to bake until done.

Remove the tart from the oven and let it cool completely.

Step 2: Prepare caramel

While the dough is baking, make the caramel. I will admit, caramel is my biggest nemesis. Some days I will get it perfectly right the first time, and other days it will take me 2 or 3 batches. This method uses the dry caramel method in which the sugar is melted alone.

Adding water and cornstarch can help prevent it from crystallizing, but this is my basic go-to recipe.

Recipe tip

If the sugar starts to brown more quickly on one side of the pot, gently swirl the pot to evenly distribute the sugar. Do not stir the sugar until it has reached the amber color because this can cause crystallization.

Slowly add the heavy cream to the browned sugar and bring to a boil. Watch out because the sugar will bubble vigorously! Finish the caramel with butter and chopped peanuts, and let it cool slightly.

Then, pour the caramel into the baked crust and let it cool.

Step 3: Make peanut butter mousse

Moving on to the third element, the peanut butter mousse. This mousse is everything I dream about. It's silky, creamy, and so rich.

To make the mousse, whip together creamy peanut butter with powdered sugar, cream cheese, and vanilla. Stir in a small amount of the whipped cream to loosen the batter and fold in the remaining whipped cream until everything is well incorporated.

Spread the mousse in the tart on top of the caramel and let it sit for 1 hour in the fridge.

Finish the triple threat chocolate tart with the chocolate ganache and let it sit for another 30 minutes or until the chocolate has set. You can chill the tart overnight the chocolate ganache will lose some of its shine.

Now you can finally dig in.

If you enjoy the tart immediately after, the peanut butter mousse will be very creamy, and the tart will be quite indulgent. If you let the tart chill for a couple of hours, the mousse will harden just a bit, and the dessert tastes almost like a chilled Reese's peanut butter cup. Either way, the triple threat chocolate tart is absolutely delicious!

Make-ahead and storage

Make-ahead: You can make the chocolate tart dough the day before and let it chill overnight. You can also bake the tart crust the day before and let it sit at room temperature. You can also prepare the entire tart the day before and let it chill overnight. Serve it chilled or let it sit at room temperature to soften before enjoying.
Store: Store leftover tart in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Frequently asked questions

What is blind baking, and why is it necessary?

Blind baking involves pre-baking the tart crust with weights to prevent it from puffing up. This ensures that the crust stays crisp and holds its shape when filled with wet ingredients like caramel or mousse.

Can I use salted butter in the caramel?

Yes, but reduce or omit the added sea salt to avoid making the caramel too salty.

Can I substitute another nut for peanuts?

Yes, you can use almonds, hazelnuts, or pecans if preferred. Just ensure they are roasted and chopped for a similar texture and flavor.

How do I know when the ganache is ready to be spread?

The ganache should be smooth and glossy with a pourable consistency. Let it cool slightly before spreading to avoid melting the mousse layer.