Hazelnut and Bittersweet Chocolate Truffle Tart

Happy Mother's Day Mom, this ones for you!

In my little patch of Maine, this weekend finds me awash in lush greens and golds.  Forsythia's in brilliant yellow and happy daffodil's coming up thru last years fallen leaves.  This is my favorite time of year, when the new green leaves come bursting out, filling in the browns of winter.  It's also Mother's day weekend and I know my Mom spent this sunny day outside in her own gardens, her favorite place to be this time of year.  

My Mom has a real penchant for chocolate and I have a Mother's Day treat for her.  Hazelnut and Bittersweet Chocolate Truffle Tart.  This tart has a buttery hazelnut crust with a touch of espresso and a lush and very creamy dark chocolate truffle filling.

Enjoy Mom, you deserve it!!

 Hazelnut and Bittersweet Chocolate Truffle Tart

Ingredients

For the crust...

1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and skinned

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon espresso powder dissolves in 1 teaspoon hot water

1 large egg yolk

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

For the filling...

10 oz. bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces

1 1/2 cup heavy cream

Note:  This recipe uses a 9 1/2" tart pan, however for this post I chose to use my 4X14" rectangular tart pan.  There will be about a half cup of filling left over which will be chilled and piped as a border of rosettes on the 2 long sides of the tart.

1.   To toast hazelnuts, preheat oven to 375° and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and dump nuts into the middle of a cloth dish towel grab the corners of the towel to bundle it up, and rub the nuts vigorously against each other inside the towel for quite a while, until most of the skin comes off. All of it will not come off, but you can get them fairly clean.

2.   Finely grind the hazelnuts in a food processor.  using an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and add the powdered sugar and beat until well blended.  Add egg yolk and espresso and beat until smooth.  Beat in hazelnuts then flour and salt mix until combined.

Gather dough together and form into a ball, flatten slightly and wrap with plastic wrap.  Chill in refrigerator for 20 minutes.

3.   Lightly flour your work table and roll out dough about 2" larger than your pan.  Transfer the dough to your tart pan as carefully as you can, don't worry if you tear the dough, you can patch it up, trim excess dough from rim of pan and if you need to, use it to patch any holes, it's all good!  Chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.

 

4.   Bake in a 350° oven for 20 minutes, prick with a fork should crust bubble up, continue to bake about 5 more minutes until set and a light golden color.  Let cool completely on a wire rack.

 5.   Place chocolate in a medium size heat proof bowl, and set aside. In a small sauce pan bring heavy cream to a simmer over medium heat.  Immediately pour over chocolate and allow to stand for a minute.  With a wire whisk stir gently until chocolate dissolves. 

Pour chocolate mixture through a strainer into a medium bowl and then pour into tart shell  being careful to not create air bubbles.  Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.  Decorate as desired with white chocolate drizzle and hazelnuts.  Enjoy!

For more yummy recipes click the links below!

Lavender and Lovage

The Hedge Combers