Dark Chocolate Lemon Tart Recipes

DARK CHOCOLATE LEMON TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180 °C / 350 °F top and bottom heat. For no-bake simply skip this step.
• Add hazelnuts and rolled oats into a high-speed blender or food processor and pulse until a coarse meal is formed.
• Add pitted dates and oil and process into a moist mixture like wet sand. The dough should be sticky, otherwise, add another date or tablespoon of oil.
• Press the mixture firmly into the tart pan starting with the sides and completing with the bottom. Use a small dough roller to get a nice uniform shell.
• Bake to get a more crisp shell: Place in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes and then set aside to cool. No-bake to get a more soft shell: Place in fridge for 30 to 60 minutes.
• Grate the yellow part of the lemon zest and remove the remaining peel. Cut pulp into small pieces and remove seeds. Collect the lemon juice.
• Mix in the corn starch into a small amount of almond milk and set aside.
• Add lemon pulp, lemon zest, lemon juice, almond milk and maple syrup to a blender or food processor and blend everything together.
• Pour the blended juice into a small sauce pan and put over medium heat. Let reduce for about 10 to 15 minutes.
• Whisk in the remaining almond milk with the corn starch and put over low heat. Whisk frequently, until the curd starts to thicken. Continue stirring continuously with a spatula until the curd is smooth.
• Let the curd cool down and spread it onto the bottom of the tart.
• Put the solid part of the coconut milk into the blender or food processor and process until a whipped cream is formed.
• Whisk in the melted chocolate and pour the finished chocolate filling into the tart.
• Place in the refrigerator and let set for around an hour or overnight.

DARK CHOCOLATE AND LEMON GANACHE TARTLETS

Steps:

• FOR PASTRY:
• Combine flour, powdered sugar and salt in processor. Using on/off turns, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolk, cream and vanilla. Process until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball. Divide dough in half. Flatten each half into disk. Wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.)
• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Roll out 1 dough disk on lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Using plate as guide, cut out three 6-inch rounds. Transfer rounds to 4 1/2-inch-diameter tartlet pans with removable bottoms. Press dough into pans. Fold in any excess dough; press to form double-thick sides. Repeat rolling, cutting and forming with remaining dough disk, making 6 crusts total. Freeze crust until firm, about 5 minutes.
• Place crusts on large baking sheet. Bake until light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool crusts completely. Remove crusts from pans.
• FOR FILLING:
• Bring 3/4 cup cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Mix in 1 tablespoon lemon peel. Divide chocolate among cooled crusts. Refrigerate tartlets until filling is set, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated.)
• Combine 1/4 cup cream and 1/2 teaspoon lemon peel in large bowl. Beat until soft peaks form. Spoon whipped cream into pastry bag fitted with star tip. Pipe cream decoratively atop tartlets. Garnish with lemon twists, if desired.

MEYER LEMON TART

Steps:

• Make the crust: in the bowl of a mixer, cream together butter and sugar. Add egg yolk and the milk, and beat to combine. In a medium bowl, combine the flour with salt. Slowly add the flour to the butter mixture, stirring until completely blended. Gather dough into two balls. Freeze one for future use, chill the other for at least 1 hour.
• Heavily butter a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the dough into the pan and trim the edges. Prick the bottom with a fork, and place the shell in the freezer for 30 minutes.
• While shell is in freezer, prepare lemon curd. Grate zest of lemons. Squeeze lemons to extract 1 cup of juice. In a medium nonreactive saucepan, combine juice and zest. Add remaining sugar, butter and salt. Place over medium heat, stirring once or twice, until sugar is dissolved and the butter is melted.
• In bowl of a mixer, combine eggs and egg yolks until blended. Slowly add hot lemon mixture to eggs until blended. Return mixture to saucepan, and place over low heat. Whisk constantly until mixture thickens to a pudding-like consistency; do not allow it to boil. Remove from heat, and continue to stir to stop the cooking. Strain lemon curd into a bowl. Adjust sugar to taste; the curd should be tart, but may need additional sugar if the lemons were unripe. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it right against the surface of the curd. Allow to cool.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove tart shell from freezer, and bake until lightly golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Spoon lemon curd into tart shell, and smooth the top. Bake until filling has puffed around the edges, about 30 minutes. Cover edges with foil, if necessary, to prevent over-browning. Cool to room temperature before serving.

WHOLE-LEMON TART

Steps:

• Center a rack in the oven, and heat it to 325 degrees. Place the crust on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Cut the lemon into thin slices, and discard the seeds. Toss the slices and sugar into the bowl of a food processor, and whir for 3 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed, until smooth. With the machine running, add the eggs, one at a time, and then, when they're incorporated, the cornstarch followed by the melted butter. Remove the bowl, and rap it against the counter a few times to pop some of the bubbles in the mixture. Pour the batter into the crust.
• Bake the tart for 45 to 55 minutes, until the filling is puffed and lightly browned - don't be concerned if the top cracks. If you tap the side of the pan, the filling should seem firm; if it jiggles just the least bit in the center, that's fine. A toothpick poked into the center - be gentle - will come out clean. Transfer the tart on the baking sheet to a cooling rack. Leave until it reaches room temperature. The tart can be served now or chilled (it will keep in the refrigerator overnight).
• Just before serving, dust the top with confectioners' sugar.