No Fuss Chocolate Tarts

Aaaannnnd its here!! Its here!! My favourite month of the year is here!!! 

Make that second favourite- my birthday month- June is my 1st favourite. 

But even as I write this I am debating if that is entirely true. I mean Christmas!!! What else compares to glorious glorious Christmas!!! The fairy lights, the blanket of snow, the spirit of joy, the aroma of spice, the warm and cosy nights, the friends and family coming together, the celebrations and most of all the generosity of spirit.

Did I mention fairy lights?! I am so obsessed with them. Every single day all I want to do is capture some form of fairy lights in or out of the house. My parents think I'm a goner. But fairy lights!!! They make everything magical. Especially around this time of the year. 

To kick off the Christmassy Season, I made something really fuss free and mind bogglingly delicious! I mean if you're not a puddle after eating this truly decadent dessert, then you probably need to reassess your life! 

In all sincerity though, the way this luscious, silky tart melts on your tongue, and then that butter-y chocolate-y crumbly crust lingers on for a bit longer while you savour the chocolate, so sensual, so sexy! This recipe is perfect for a special date night during the festive season, or can be easily doubled to make a larger serving. 

Lets get cookin' then, shall we?! 

Serves: 2

Time Taken: 20 mins + chilling time

Complexity: **

You'll need

4-5 Oreo cookies (cream or chocolate filled)

30 gms butter, softened at room temperature

2/3 cup dark, semi sweet chocolate (atleast 50% cocoa)

3-4 tbsp heavy cream

Strawberries to garnish

Pinch of love

Method

We need to first make n chill our crust for a couple of hours. For the crust, in a food processor, take the oreo cookies. For a really chocolate-y flavour, I used chocolate cream oreos. Feel free to use the plain cream ones if you choose to. I made 2, 5" tartlets with these cookies. If you're making just one, use 4-5 cookies. 

Pulse the cookies till they turn crumbly, like coarse sea salt. This should take about 2-3 minutes. 

I took the butter and chopped it in smaller cubes and then heated it in a microwave for 20 seconds

Till it melted like this

Now add the butter to the oreo crumble in the food processor and give it a whizz. 

The mix should come together to form a lump like this. Don't worry right now if its too wet or dry. 

Transfer the mix onto a greased removable tartlet pan. Greasing ensures that the tart shell will come out easily. And the removable bottom makes it easier to handle. 

Press down the gravelly, oreo butter mix with the back of the spoon so it is evenly spread on and around the tartlet mould. Now we need to chill this for about 10 minutes till the crust solidifies a little. 

For the filling, we need to make a chocolate ganache. For that, cut your chocolate in small chunks. It is easier to do so if the chocolate is at room temperature. 

In a separate bowl, simmer the cream for about a minute till it starts to bubble around the edges. Pour the cream on to the chocolate and allow it to rest while the tart crust is chilling. 

After a couple of minutes, take a spatula and mix the cream and the chocolate. The heat from the cream will melt the chocolate and they come together to make a rich, creamy, chocolatey, glossy, silken ganache. 

Now take the chilled crust from the fridge and start pouring the ganache into it 

Tell me this is not sexy!!  

Also, guess who licked the bowl of ganache clean?! 

When the tartlet is filled with the ganache, tap it gentle on the table top to make sure there are no bubbles and you get a smooth shiny top. 

Now comes the most difficult part- the wait! You have to wait for atleast a couple of hours for the ganache to set completely. Otherwise if you cut the tart too soon, the ganache will flow down the sides. On second thoughts, it doesn't seem like a bad idea.... but for the sake of this recipe, chill the tart. I chilled mine overnight. Cover it with a plastic wrap so it stays safe from any other smells. 

Once chilled, remove the tart from the mould. 

Garnish it with some strawberries, cherries, whipped cream, mint, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, nuts, praline, crumbled oreos, chocolate flakes, whatever floats your boat. I just went ahead with the classic chocolate strawberry combo and I realised once again why this is The best combination ever! 

Now you could very well infuse the chocolate ganache with orange zest or some Kahlua for a variation of flavours. I just enjoyed mine as a beautiful classic. 

I so wanted to dig right in but I had to wait to click the photos!! Okay, no, as much as I liked you to think I made a big sacrifice to take pics, I have to confess, I had a whole other tart ready and I was eating it while I took pics of this! Sneaky, huh?! Can't blame me though!! Blame this chocolatey gorgeousness

Look at the middle of this, soooooooo gooooooddd!! 

Irresistible?! Indeed!! Indulge!