Sunday, April 11, 2010

Chocolate doesn't make the world go around, but it makes the trip worthwhile

Here is another recipe from the Cooks Challenge thread at the Taste forums. I swear those girls are trying to make me fat! Not to mention depressed, as this totally failed for me. It's a long messy story, involving flying pie dishes, crying four year olds, and globs of chocolate on my phone. I could give you my method, and break it down to where I went wrong, along with all the gory results, but I'd really rather mop the floors and then go wash the berries and chocolate out of my hair. So here's the real recipe, and a few hints at the end.

Chocolate Berry Truffle Tart
150g Oreos. (We used half Chocolate Creme, and half Strawberry)
120g unsalted butter, melted
300ml thickened cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g good-quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped
425g can mixed berries in syrup
3 tbs icing sugar

Drain the berries, reserving syrup. Weigh berries, and add back enough syrup to make up 275g.

Lightly grease the base and sides of four 8cm x 2cm loose-bottomed tart pans.

Process biscuits in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Add melted butter and process until well combined. Press biscuit mixture firmly over bases of tart pans to cover. Chill while you make filling.

Heat 200ml cream in a pan with vanilla over low heat and bring to just below boiling point. Remove from heat, add chocolate and stir until melted. Transfer to a bowl and cool completely.

Using a fork, crush half the berries in a bowl. Spread over biscuit bases, then cover with chocolate mixture. Cover and freeze for 2-3 hours until firm. (Remove from freezer 30 minutes before serving.)

Combine icing sugar and remaining berries in a bowl. Crush with a fork until sugar dissolves. Press mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl and discard seeds.

Whip remaining 100ml cream and swirl through berry puree. Dust tarts with cocoa - for a decorative pattern, place a paper doily over plate, dust with cocoa, then remove doily. Top with berry cream.


TIP: Use the loose bottom tart pans like it says. Otherwise you'll need to use too much force to get the biscuit goodness out and your dish may become airbourne.

Make four, don't try and make one big one. Otherwise you will need a lot longer freezing time, and your layers will be sloppy. Making it impossible to plate attractively, and making a much larger mess if indeed you tart does end up airbourne and/or upside down on the floor.

If all else fails, Grab a spoon, glop it into bowls, scrape curls of the base on top, and call it Deconstructed Truffle Tart, or just gloopy chocolate pudding (Master Five's suggestion). Regardless of how it looks, it'll still taste good.

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