Simple Chocolate Tart

If I were to do a survey on the most popular dessert choice, chocolate would most probably be a firm favourite! Chocolate in any form will do! And that’s why, this Chocolate Tart is a recipe you can rely on to provide that decadent, luxurious, chocolate fix when you need one.

This tart is easy to make and, providing you have all the ingredients to hand, it can be read in a short time. In fact, the tart spends more time chilling in the fridge than you do making it.

Tarts are one of my favourite desserts to make. Why? Because they are quick and easy to make but look pretty and taste delicious. They can be made with healthier, wholefood ingredients such as nuts and seeds. They can be sweetened with more natural sweetness of dates and a drizzle pure Maple syrup.

If you like this tart, you might want to try my Almond Biscuit Base Tart with Creamy Chocolate Filling recipe or my Raspberry Topped Chocolate Tart with Almond Biscuit recipe which are similar to to this Chocolate tart.

WHY YOU WILL LOVE THIS RECIPE

A tart recipe that uses store cupboard ingredients – needs only 6 ingredients you may already have in your pantry.

A tart which will look beautiful as the centre piece of your dinner table and the topping can be swapped to suit the season. Decorate with fruits, sprinkles, shavings, sprigs of fresh herbs – the possibilities are endless!

It uses healthier ingredients of nuts, coconut cream, dark chocolate and pure Maple syrup compared to traditional pastry which uses white flour, granulated white sugar, baking spread and heavy whipping cream.

It can be made a day ahead of the serving time, freeing you up and enabling you to be prepared ahead of time.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

A short list of ingredients needed for this Chocolate Tart. Just 6 ingredients for the crust and the filling.

It really helps things to go smoothly if you get everything together before you start, including the equipment needed too.  So here is a list of everything you need to have a stress-free baking experience;

Base

• 400g Mixed Nuts
• 8 Soft Medjool Dates
• 1.5 TBSP Coconut oil
• 2 TBSP water

Filling

• 125g Dark chocolate
• 2 TBSP Pure Maple syrup
• 350mls Coconut cream – thick cream only from a can – discard the water

EQUIPMENT

• 23cm loose bottom tart / flan tin
• Food processor
• Small saucepan
• Glass bowl
• Spoon
• Oven 180 degrees

Nuts – you can use a single type of nut or a mixture of 2, 3 or more!  There is no need to dry roast the nuts for this recipe because you will be blind baking it in the oven once it has been assembled

Dates – the stickiness of the dates, really help to hold this crust together and they also give it a lovely sweet flavour.  If your dates are not soft and gooey, try placing them in a bowl and covering with freshly boiled water and allowing them to soak for 10mins, drain and Sicard the water.  This will help them to soften and make it easier to blend together in the food processor with the nuts to form a lovely, sticky pie crust dough, ready for pressing into the tin.

Dark chocolate – I prefer to use a good quality dark chocolate with 85% minimum cocoa solids.  If you use a 70% dark chocolate, please bear in mind that this will contain more sugar so it will be sweeter.  You may prefer this level of sweetness to please feel free to choose to your preference.  Anything more than 85%, I feel is too bitter and would require more sweetness adding to offset this bitterness.  However, it depends on your quality of dark chocolate used because there are some 90% chocolate brands which taste sublime! I will eave this to your discretion, your pallet and your wallet!

Cream Filling – now this is where is gets interesting! You have a few different options when it comes to choosing your filling. It depends on eating preferences such as are you vegan? Dairy intolerant, calorie counting, allergic to soya, low-carb, keto…..! Each filling idea really does impact on these dietary requirements. My personal requirements are that I try and use minimally processed, healthier, optimum quality ingredients as much as I can. It would be impossible to cater for every persons different dietary eating patterns in one recipe, so my suggestion is that you mix and match from my different tart recipes, a crust and a filling and a topping which you can combine, which caters for your requirements, tastes and budget.  Once you find a tart combination that works for you, stick with it and just alter the toppings and you will have a fool proof tart recipe which you can bring to the table, again and again but it will fresh and new every time with seasonal toppings!

VARIATIONS

Nuts – Try alternating the nuts for different varieties and see which flavour you prefer. An almond based pie crust will taste quite different to a walnut one for example.

Make a chocolate tart crust by adding 2 TBSP of raw cacao powder to your crust mixture.

Chocolate – if you find 85% dark chocolate too bitter, try a 70% version or substitute some of the dark chocolate for milk chocolate.

Topping – once you’ve perfected your tart – go crazy with the toppings! Set aside some time to devote to your decoration. It’s a calming activity which is really rewarding at the end of it once you see the beautiful dessert you have created.

HOW TO MAKE

There’s just 2 steps to making this Simple Chocolate Tart.

Step 1 – make the crust by placing the crust ingredients into a food processor, pulsing the ingredients until they form a sticky, dough type consistency which you can press together between your thumb and fingers.

Tip – If you don’t have a food processor, you can chop the nuts and dates on a chopping board with a knife.  This will take some time and patience to get it to the small, finely chopped consistency needed for the crust to stick together, but it is possible, if required.  A food processor will take a matter of seconds to do the same job, so it is a worthwhile investment if you have the kitchen space and finances.

Press the crust mixture into the tart tin using the back of a spoon or clean hands.

Bake the tart crust in the oven at 180 degrees for 10 minutes.  This baking will help to release the oils from the nuts, giving them a wonderful flavour and the cooling process, once removed from the oven will help to firm up the crust.

Step 2 – make the filling by melting the chocolate over a Bain-marie and then folding in your cream filling and sweetener of pure Maple syrup.

Gently pouring this luxurious, melted creamy chocolate mixture onto the cooled tart crust, ensuring an even layer of deliciousness!

Cool in the fridge – an important step to ensure the filling forms a solid, creamy texture.  This will take a minimum of 2hours and can be left overnight if needed.

HOW TO SERVE

Remove the completed chocolate tart from the fridge 30 minutes before serving to take off the chill from the refrigerator and this will allow it to soften slightly and the ganache filling will become easier to sink your fork and teeth into!

RECIPE TIPS

Use the cream from a can of coconut milk – not the water – you want to have thick, cream, not a milk consistency because it will not set.  If you live in a cold climate, the cream will naturally rise to the top of the can.  If not, you will need to place the can in the fridge before using and scoop out the cream.  Depending on the brand you use, there will be differing amounts of cream available in the can.  You need roughly 350mls of cream so may need 2 cans.

Dates – if your dates are quite hard or more tough, simply place them in a bowl with boiled water from the kettle and leave them to soak for 10minsutes.  Discard the water and then they will be soft enough to blitz in your food processor.

Make a chocolate tart crust by adding 2 TBSP of raw cacao powder to your crust mixture.

Chocolate – if you find 85% dark chocolate too bitter, try a 70% version or substitute some of the dark chocolate for milk chocolate.

FAQ’s

Why did my tart filling not set?

You may have used coconut milk instead of coconut cream? Only use the thick cream from a can of coconut milk and discard the water or reserve for another use.

Did you leave it in the fridge to set for 2hours or more? The chocolate needs time to set after being melted and this will take time once it has been mixed with the cream.

Can I make this tart ahead of time?

Yes – you can make this tart the day before you need to eat it.  The minimum amount of time you need is around 3hours which will give you time to prepare the tart, chill and set in the refrigerator and decorate.

Can I freeze this tart?

This tart recipe is best made and eaten either on the day of serving or within 24hrs.  It can be frozen at either of 2 points, 1) Freeze the crust or 2) crust & filling together by placing the tart tin in a zip lock bag and placing flat on a freezer shelf. Remove from the freezer and thaw in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.  Please note, the crust after freezing and thawing will have more moisture in it so will not be as crunchy as when it was made fresh.  If you want to prevent this, freeze the crust separately and place it in the oven to firm for 10 mins once it has been thawed.  The you can add the filling once the crust has cooled.