Chocolate Raspberry Tart

File this one away under "Ridiculously Good".    I say this without the slightest bit of exaggeration.   My pet peeve for recipes that claim to be the best ever (ever. ever. ever.) keeps me cautious on my use of superlatives.

I am one of those strange women who never enjoyed chocolate until my thirties, when some massive hormonal shift took over and swayed my taste.    I didn't like ground beef either, but that's a different story and completely unappetizing in the context of chocolate.

The cravings started with those those little volcano chocolate cakes with the melting centers.  These did the job until they started appearing on menus everywhere and quality took a nosedive.    As a rule, I now only order "the volcano" when the menu requires a twenty minute lead time, otherwise, I don't bother.

Lately, I have been looking for a chocolate dessert that I can serve at home.   A dinner party staple.   Something easy, but, fabulous.   This is the recipe.    A layer of buttery chocolaty crust, topped with a truffle like (extremely rich) interior, brushed with a thin layer of fresh raspberry preserves and finished with a smooth dark chocolate glaze.    

Smooth, rich, creamy chocolate heaven.   Seriously.  The best dessert I've ever made.  

John actually asked that I quote his initial reaction, so, here is the shortened version,  "OMG".   

I adapted the recipe from the original Chocolate Glazed Chocolate Tart recipe on epicurious.    For this version, I added a layer of raspberry preserves, used slightly less salt and made this in a ten inch tart pan versus a nine inch pan.

Epicurious has this as one of its blue ribbon desserts.  Read the reviews and then try this and you'll know why.

Chocolate Raspberry Tart


Ingredients


Crust
Nine chocolate graham crackers, finely ground
Five tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup of sugar

Filling
1 and 1/4 cups heavy cream
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preserves
1/4 cup raspberry preserves

Glaze
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 and 3/4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon warm water

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

To make crust, combine graham crackers, butter and sugar in small bowl.   Press mixture into a nine or ten inch tart pan, distributing evenly along the bottom and up the sides of the pan.

Bake in oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until firm.    Remove from oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes.

Add 9 ounces of chopped bittersweet chocolate to medium bowl.   Set aside.

Heat 1 and 1/4 cup heavy cream in small pot on stove over high heat just until boiling point is reached.   Remove from heat and pour over chopped chocolate and let sit for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together two eggs, vanilla extract and salt.

After 5 minutes, slowly stir to combine chocolate and cream until it comes together in a smooth filling.   After combining, stir in egg mixture.

Pour filling into cooled crust.    Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes.    Remove from oven and set aside.   The tart will continue to cook after removing to fully set the chocolate filling.   Cool tart for an hour.

Heat 1/4 cup of raspberry preserves in microwave for 30 seconds until spreadable.   Using pastry brush, spread thin layer of preserves on top of cooled tart filling.

To make glaze, heat 2 tablespoons heavy cream on stove until boiling.   Pour over remaining chopped chocolate in small bowl and stir to combine.    Add corn syrup and water to form a glaze.  

Pour glaze over the top of raspberry layer and shake tart pan until it reaches all edges.   Set aside for approximately an hour until glaze has set.

What is your favorite dessert?   Does it involve chocolate?