Chocolate Cream Tart with Raspberries For the Win!

Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I NEED CHOCOLATE. I know Hallowe'en is right around the corner, but I need chocolate NOW.

I love crème patissiere tarts and I thought I would combine those two loves. So, here's the ingredient list, only some of which is picture. (Why? I have no idea. But there ya go. You'll just have to imagine it all in your head.)

 

1 cup flour, plus a bit more for dusting

1/4 cup cocoa powder

7 TBS unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 large egg yolks

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 3/4 c whole milk

6 oz good chocolate chopped

14 oz raspberries

powdered sugar, for dusting

 Rub flour, cocoa powder, and butter together until it becomes like crumbs. This is an enjoyable exercise. If anyone asks what you're doing, smile and say, "I'm making chocolate butter crumbs." People will give you space, since obviously only very important folks can stand around rubbing butter with their bare hands.
Stir in 1/4 cup sugar.

Whisk the egg yolk with the vanilla. (Can you see the SPEED? I scare myself. I'm that good.)

Add the yolk mix to the flour mix and form a soft dough. Add a bit of water if it's too stiff.

Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge one hour. Pour yourself a cup of coffee and sit outside in the sun. Contemplate the future. No, wait. Contemplate the chocolate cream tart. That way, the future holds only wonderful things.

 I thought the chocolate needed its own picture. Mmmmmmmm..........

 Oh, and here's one with the foil ripped away. I may have taken a small nibble at this point.

 Preheat the oven to 350F while you work on the chocolate cream.  Beat 1/2 c sugar, 2 large eggs, cornstarch and 1 tsp vanilla. (Again, so fast I'm just a blur. I should be on TV.)

 Pour 1 3/4 cup whole milk and 4 oz of chocolate in a pan. Heat to a boil, stirring constantly.

Once the milk and chocolate has barely boiled, whisk into the egg mix, a dribble at a time. (I took this photo with my toes. I'm that talented.)

(P.S. Don't be jealous. It's unattractive.)

Return the mix to the pan and let it get just to the bubbling stage, stirring the whole time. Remove from the heat. If it seems lumpy, whisk a little or use egg beaters to make sure everything is nice and smooth. When it's cool enough, lay plastic wrap over the top so it won't form a hard skin. Let small, barefoot children lick the beaters.

Remove the chilled dough from the fridge and roll out to 1/8 inch.

 Lay into the bottom of a tart pan. If your tart pan has gone missing, and you find it outside being used as a cat dish, go head and use a spring form pan.

 Of course the recipe calls for 'baking beans', those ceramic beans that you lay over the top of the aluminum foil to make sure the crust bakes flat. Hm. Well, normal beans work, too. And they're super cheap.

Bake at 350F for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and take off the foil and the beans. Bake another 5 minutes. Set aside to cool. You have fifteen different projects going with this recipe. I hope the phone doesn't ring or anyone knocks at the door or your kids get stuck in the laundry chute. Because it all hinges on completing each step in perfect sequence...

Melt the remaining chocolate over hot water.

 Gratuitous melting chocolate picture...

 Pour the chocolate into the cooled crust and spread it around. Lick the bowl. (That's an order.)

 Pour in the chocolate cream. Let it cool for another 20 minutes in the fridge.

 Arrange the raspberries. For off season berries, these were pretty good!

 Ok, not quite like the picture, but I like it anyway.

 Hm. Sprinkling on the powdered sugar. Looks like Santa sneezed on it.

 Not sure about this. Maybe it needs more powdered sugar. Now I can't see the berries. I tried to transfer it to the cake platter and it broke. Of course that meant we had to sample it. Mmmmm.

 Maybe it needs more raspberries?

Ok, I'd better stop fiddling around with it. I handed it over to the ravenous crowds and it was GONE. So, all in all, I'd say it was a fun time. Edna enjoyed seeing me rush from one end of the kitchen to the other, muttering things like "three minutes on medium heat, stirring constantly" and "1/8 of an inch and where is that TART PAN?"

I think we might try a less strenuous recipe next time. Or at least, one that Edna has a beater in because she always seems to have good advice and a story to share along the way.

  Until next time, my friends! Have a great week and I hope you get some chocolate!