The Best Chocolate Honey Baklavas Tart Recipes

THE BEST CHOCOLATE HONEY BAKLAVAS TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180oC / 350o F or 160oC / 320oF, for convectionoven.
• While the oven is preheating, toast the walnuts and almonds, for about 15 minutes and set aside to cool. Reserve 10 walnuts halves for decoration. Whenthey cool pulse the remaining in a food processor with a couple of spins tomake coarse pieces. Add the bread crumbs, cinnamon, cloves and cane sugar to the nuts, mix and set aside.
• Prepare the syrup. Put the honey with water as well as spices in a small pot and mix until the honey has dissolved. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, discard the spices and add the lemon juice.
• Prepare the clarified butter. Put the butter in a small frying pan or pot and melt it over medium heat. Remove the froth which rises on top and use the melted butter only. The milk solids should be discarded.
• Take 10 sheets of phyllo and put the tart pan on top. Lightly score the phyllos 2.5 cm (1 inch) away from the tart pan and with a scissors, cut round sheets of phyllo.
• Brush the tart pan with butter.
• Brush three sheets of phyllo and place one on top of the other. Using the brush, arrange them to sit on the tart pan. Sprinkle 1/3 of the nut mixture on top. Place another two phyllos, brushed with butter on top and press them with the brush to sit over the nuts. Add the next 1/3 of nuts and two more sheets on top, brushed with butter. Continue with the remaining nuts.. Finally add the remaining three sheets, each one brushed with butter.
• Now take the edges of the phyllo and twist them around the pan, to form the rim. If the edges are dry, wet them by brushing them with some butter. Finally brush the top.
• Wet your hands and sprinkle some water on top.
• Reduce the temperature to 160oC / 320oF or 150oC / 302oF for a convection oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden on top.
• When the baklavas is ready, remove from the oven. Using a spoon wet the surface and sides of the tart with the cold (or lukewarm) syrup. Set aside untilthe syrup is absorbed.
• While it is cooling prepare the chocolate ganache. Place a double boiler (bain Mari) on the heat and add the heavy cream. When the water starts boiling add the chocolate, cut into pieces and mix until it starts melting. Add the vanilla or raspberry essence, salt and pepper and continue mixing until it melts.
• Add the chocolate ganache on top and decorate it with the reserved roasted walnut halves.
• Set aside for a few hours for the chocolate to set before cutting. If you like, when the ganache sets, you can decorate it with whipped cream as well.
• No refrigeration is needed. However, if you add the whipped cream you will have to refrigerate it.

BAKLAVA TARTS

Steps:

• To make pastry: Dump everything into a bowl, roll up your sleeves and get your hands right into it. Work the dough well and knead for a couple of minutes. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or more) before proceeding with recipe.
• Make 12 balls of equal size out of the dough and tamp a pastry ball down into each of 12 non-stick muffin cups, making sure pastry covers bottom and comes 3/4s of the way up sides.
• To make filling: Mix all filling ingredients together well. Carefully distribute filling mixture into pastry-lined muffin cups.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes. The pastry should be a light golden colour (loosely tent with aluminium foil if walnuts are browning too quickly, but the mixture will be dark - like a pecan or walnut pie). Wait 2 minutes after removing from oven and very carefully, using the tip of a thin, pointed knife, gently knudge each tart out of its cup and transfer to a rack to cool. Some tarts may be a little stuck, just run the tip of the knife around then knudge gently.

CHOCOLATE BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease a 10x14-inch baking pan with butter.
• Mix pecans, dark chocolate, 3/4 cup sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. Trim phyllo dough to fit prepared baking pan. Layer 8 sheets of phyllo dough in prepared baking pan, brushing each sheet with melted butter; sprinkle with 2 cups pecan mixture. Spread butter on 4 more sheets of phyllo and layer over pecans; sprinkle with 2 more cups pecans. Repeat layers with 4 more sheets of phyllo and remaining pecans. Pour any leftover butter over baklava.
• Cut through the top few layers of phyllo lengthwise, leaving bottom layer intact, to create 4 long rows. Make evenly-spaced zigzag cuts along each row to create small triangles, again leaving bottom layer of phyllo intact.
• Bake in preheated oven until phyllo dough is golden brown and flaky, about 1 hour; immediately finish cutting through to bottom layer of baklava.
• Bring orange juice, honey, water, 1/2 cup sugar, and lemon juice to a boil in a saucepan; reduce heat to medium and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Pour sauce over baklava.
• Melt remaining 2 ounces chocolate and 1 teaspoon butter in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring frequently and scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula to avoid scorching. Drizzle chocolate over baklava. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.