In an almond shortcrust pastry tart shell, I might add. You know, just in case the Salted + Chocolate Ganache Tart title wasn’t enticing enough 😛
So I saw a friend’s Instagram feed a few weeks ago, where she made 2 beautiful tarts: one was an oreo and chocolate ganache tart and the other, a salted caramel and chocolate tart. As destiny had it, I wanted to use up some of the beautiful Valrhona that I had been hoarding, as well as the salted caramel that I impulsively picked up at Laduree. [Yes, this story already has two fabulous elements of success: valrhona and laduree.] The result? A luscious chocolate ganache piled over a thin layer of salted caramel, enveloped in a almost crumbly almond shortcrust tart shell.
And ever since, I’ve already dished out over a dozen of these babies, and still going strong!
Each slice, cut with the help of a slightly warm knife, resulted in oozy salted caramel spilling out under the velvety chocolate, all held up perfectly by the grainy almond shortcrust, that provides the perfect bite and texture to the desert. To make them a little prettier, I used a toothpick to make little swirls in the warm chocolate ganache, which set into this lovely little underrated pattern!
Also, you can always play around with the the ganache proportions, as well as the strength of the cocoa. For some, Ive even tried a lot more salted caramel than I ideally would, but with darker chocolate, to balance the sweetness of the caramel with the intense bitterness of the chocolate.
The verdict?
The fundamental strength of this recipe guarantees a beautiful looking and tasting tart, each and every time around. It really isn’t even that complicated to make, but the glorious results really do give the impression that this baby has taken quite a lot of work to achieve! 🙂
And the most wonderful part of this Salted Caramel + Chocolate Ganache Tart is that it literally keeps perfectly in the fridge for well over a week!
- 3 tablespoons almonds
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 90gm butter, cold and cut into pieces
- 170gm bittersweet chocolate chips
- 300ml heavy cream [I use 1 1/2 chilled Amul fresh cream tertrapacks]
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
- 1/3 cup salted caramel
- Preheat oven to 180*c.
- Make dough: In a food processor, pulse almonds until finely ground. Add sugar and pulse again. Add the flour and pulse until combined.
- Add butter, pulsing until coarse crumbs form with no large butter lumps (dough should clump together when squeezed with fingers).
- Immediately transfer dough to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Using a measuring cup, evenly press dough in bottom and up sides of pan.
- Bake in center of oven until golden brown and firm to the touch, about 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 1 hour.
- Warm the salted caramel in the microwave till runny. Pour evenly in the tart shell, and keep rotating till the insides (not edges) are covered with a thin layer of the caramel. Leave to cool in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- In the mean time, make the ganache: Place chocolate in a large mixing bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream to a boil. Pour hot cream, through a sieve, over chocolate. Stir until smooth and creamy in texture. Mix in vanilla, if using.
- Pour chocolate mixture into center of cooled tart shell, over the salted caramel. Gently place in refrigerator to chill and set for 4 hours.
- Place the tart over a glass or mug, the slowly release the tart ring. It should easily drop down. Now bring the tart onto a counter and with a sharp knife, gently release it from the removable bottom of the tart tin. This requires very minimal effort - but does require a gentle touch.
- Slice with a sharp, slightly warm knife and enjoy.
- I personally preferred having a cake lifter for this tart, since it keeps moving in and out of the fridge and oven. Worth the 600 rupee investment.
- Don't be alarmed if the tart shell feels crumbly and not bound together when you remove from the oven. In truth, it will fall apart unless you fill it with the chocolate ganache - this tart shell gets literally help together by the set ganache.
- I made this initially in a springform cake tin (as you can see) as I didn't have a removable bottom pie tin. Please do remember, removable bottom is essential here.
Chandni Kapoor
May 5, 2015 at 2:10 pm (9 years ago)Hey…this recepie looks great and I’m definitely going to try it!
Just wanted to check…you mentioned chilled cream in the ingredients but in the method you say we have to boil the cream…is there some reason behind this??
Thanks
Puja
May 6, 2015 at 1:04 pm (9 years ago)Hi Chandni, I personally prefer storing my cream in the fridge because I find that at room temperature (especially in India), the cream pours out unevenly, with the fat globules at the bottom and the runnier parts on top. Now since this recipe calls for 1.5 tetra packs, using cream which isn’t “separated” helps, as the thicker parts remain evenly distributed and not clumped at the bottom.
All this being said, if you do use room temperature cream, make sure to shake up the container very well and press all over to ensure no clumping, and you’re good to go! Happy baking!
swati
July 22, 2015 at 5:02 pm (9 years ago)which salted caramel to buy in india
Puja
July 23, 2015 at 11:05 am (9 years ago)Hi Swati,
Im Bombay, try the homemade salted caramel by Suzette (Nariman Point/Bandra) or I make my own, using this recipe:
1 cup granulated sugar
6 Tablespoons (90g) salted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream*
1 teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
Directions: In a saucepan, completely melt the sugar and let it brown (not burn). Immediately add the butter (the caramel should bubble rapidly when the butter is added). Mix for a couple of minutes till completely melted. Very slowly, drizzle in 1/2 cup of heavy cream while stirring. Allow the mixture to boil for 1 minute and then remove from heat and stir in the salt, to taste
It stays for a couple of weeks in the fridge without any issues!
*Heavy cream – I use Amul’s Fresh Cream tetra packs, and despite them being somewhere between single and boule cream, it tends to work beautifully!