I served this Chocolate Tart With Star Anise And Cinnamon dessert on the Friday after Thanksgiving, last year. It was a great success, especially because everyone by then was already tired of turkey and pumpkin pie! Very refreshing to have a different type of dessert, even if some of the dishes on the table were still “Thanksgiving” ish…The recipe was inspired by the books of Eric Lanlard, one of my favorite Pastry Chefs out there.
This recipe is very “winter” like. The chocolate ganache is infused with cinnamon, nutmeg, and star anise and it is delicious. The crust is a beautiful chocolate flaky pastry that is pre-baked.
The decor is up to you. I made a “nougatine” and decorated the tart with star anise and cinnamon bark. It was beautiful. It also looked great on the table. The cocoa powder on top of the tart gave the dessert an elegant look.
Simple, decadent and delicious. Great for the holidays! And why not? Valentines Day is a great occasion too for serving this amazing dessert!
Enjoy!
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- Chocolate flaky pastry shell:
- 1½ cups plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
- ¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1.3 cup plus 1 Tbsp powder sugar
- 1¼ sticks unsalted butter chopped small
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Chocolate mixture:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 Tbsp glucose syrup or corn syrup
- 1 vanilla bean split
- 1 star anise
- 1 stick cinnamon
- ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 7 oz semisweet dark chocolate broken into pieces
- 6 Tbsp unsalted butter
- Nougatine:
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 stick unsalted butter chopped small
- 3 Tbsp glucose syrup or corn syrup
- ¾ cup superfine sugar
- ¾ cup toasted slivered almonds
- ⅓ cup coffee beans crushed
- To decorate:
- cinnamon sticks, star anise and unsweetened cocoa powder
- How to make the crust:
- Sift the flour, cocoa, and powder sugar together into a large mixing bowl
- Using your fingertips, rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs
- Make a well in the center and add the egg yolks and vanilla. Again, use your fingertips, mix together to make a smooth dough.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gather it into a ball
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before using
- Any leftover dough can be frozen for up to 6 weeks
- When ready to use it, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 2 inches larger than your pan
- Lift your dough over a rolling pin and lightly drape it over the pan
- Press the dough gently into place with your fingertips
- Prebake the pastry shell as "blind bake":
- Prick the bottom of the pastry shell with a fork. Chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes(this will help to stop it from shrinking during baking.)
- Place a large piece of parchment paper over the bottom and sides of the pastry shell. Fill the bottom with pie weights or dried uncooked beans
- Bake it at 350F for 8-10 minutes, remove the weight and bake for another 4-5 minutes or until the bottom is dry and crisp
- Leave the pie crust in the pan and continue with your recipe
- Chocolate mixture:
- Put the cream, glucose(corn syrup), vanilla bean and spices into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and set aside to steep for 10 minutes
- Place the chocolate in a large bowl. Pour the flavored cream through a strainer over the chocolate. While the mixture ins warm, add the butter and stir gently using a spatula until blended
- Don't over stir. Pour the mixture into the cooked pastry shell and let set in the refrigerator
- Nougatine:
- Put the milk, butter, and glucose into a clean saucepan and heat gently until the butter has melted
- Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Increase the heat until you have a thick syrup, but not a caramel(use a sugar thermometer- you need the syrup to be 222F)
- Remove from the heat and stir in the slivered almonds and crushed coffee beans
- Pour the mixture on the prepared baking sheet and bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the nougatine has turned a nice caramel color
- Let the nougatine cool until brittle. Break into large pieces and decorate the tart by pushing pieces of nougatine into the set filling
- Decorate the tart dusting cocoa powder over it and add the cinnamon sticks and star anise
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