Chocolate-Caramel Tart with Drunken Raspberries

I love cooking magazines, but it's not often that I actually make any of the recipes. Craig suggested I make this one since we have so many raspberries from the garden. There are four seperate recipes for making the tart, but none of them are too difficult.

Click Here for Printable Recipe

Chocolate-Caramel Tart with Drunken Raspberries
Bon Appetit, June 2006, pg 109



CRUST
1 cup all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons cocoa nibs

FOR CRUST:
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 375 degrees. Blend flour, sugar, and salt in food processor. Add 1/2 cup butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolks, process until moist clumps form. Add cocoa nibs; blend in using on/off turns. Press dough onto bottom and up sides of prepared pan. Bake until crust is golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool pan on rack while preparing caramel filling.

Raw Crust


Baked


CARAMEL FILLING
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

FOR CARAMEL FILLING
Combine sugar and 1/4 cup water in heavy medium saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and boil without stirring until mixture is deep amber, occasionally brushing down sides of pan with wet pastry brush and swirling pan, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat; add cream (mixture will bubble vigorously). Add butter and stir over low heat until caramel is completely smooth. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; stir in salt. Cool 10 minutes. Pour warm caramel into crust. Let stand at room temperature until completely cool, about 45 minutes.

Caramel Layer


CHOCOLATE GANACHE
1 cup heavy whipping cream
5 oz high-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped

FOR GANACHE
Bring cream to simmer in small saucepan. Remove from heat; add chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Let stand until slightly cooked but still pourable, about 10 minutes. Pour ganache evenly over caramel filling. Refrigerate tart uncovered until chocolate is firm, about 2 hours.

Mom got me this bar of chocolate and it was perfect for this recipe.


Making the ganache


In case you are wondering, the little lumps in our ganache is coconut (not in the original recipe, but sounded like a good addition. We added 1/2 Cup)


Chillin in the fridge


DRUNKEN RASPBERRIES
2 - 1/2 pint containers of fresh raspberries
3/4 cup raspberry liquor

FOR RASPBERRIES
Combine raspberries and liquor in small bowl. Let soak at room temperature at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.

The layers looked neat, but to be honest the caramel flavor was lost.


Slice plated with raspberries.


Scott's Tasting Note - best served with a large glass of cold milk.