Posted on Friday, 8th July 2011 by Grace

When I finally decided on Lemon Meringue Tarts for the holiday weekend I knew I would have to offer another choice because not everyone in my family is a fan of citrus desserts.  It didn’t take me too long to decide on the other option because everyone in my family loves chocolate.  I decided immediately to pair the chocolate with luscious caramel.  I also wanted to add a few different textures and flavours.

A photo of Italian Desserts, Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello (Chocolate-Caramel Tarts) presented on white doilies.

I present to you pure indulgence, Chocolate-Caramel Tart – crispy, hazelnut sweet short pastry with four layers of goodness – caramel, toasted hazelnuts, dark and milk chocolate ganache, and milk chocolate glaze.  And for the decadent finale, sweetened whipped cream, a drizzling of caramel sauce and a sprinkling of hazelnut praline.

A photo of 6 Chocolate Tarts with a layer of caramel and toasted hazelnuts displayed on a dark wooden board.

I could have stopped with the dark and milk chocolate ganache layer but the chocolate lover in me took over.  And I also continued on because my kids find the dark chocolate a little too bitter, even when it’s combined with the milk chocolate. Adding the final layer of milk chocolate glaze gives the tart an overall sweeter flavour.

A photo of Chocolate Tarts with Caramel drizzle on top and a sprinkle of hazelnut praline.

Wow! – I couldn’t believe how quickly these tarts disappeared, they were the first treats to go – We definitely eat with our eyes first.

A photo of a Chocolate-Caramel Tart with sweetened whipped cream, caramel sauce and hazelnut praline displayed on a yellow cupcake stand.

The classical pairing of chocolate and caramel is one of my favourites but adding toasted nuts brings any dessert to another level for me.  I love the nutty flavour but I think it’s the creaminess of the chocolate and caramel combined with the crunchy nuts that win me over.

A photo of a Chocolate-Caramel Tart on a blue dessert dish.

I wish the kids enjoyed the pairing as much as I do.  They love the flavour but aren’t a fan of the crunch. Usually I have to make two sets of desserts, one with and one without nuts.  Funny it didn’t seem to matter with these tarts.

A photo of Pasta Frolla Tart Shells displayed on a dark wooden board.

Looking back I probably should’ve made some with and without; they were received so well and it would have been nice to have a few more on hand.

A photo of six Chocolate-Caramel Tarts {Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello} displayed on a wooden board.

If you enjoy the pairing of chocolate and caramel Marly made some pretty amazing that I’ve been meaning to try.

A photo of Chocolate Tarts with a layer of caramel and toasted hazelnuts, topped with whipped cream, caramel sauce and hazelnut praline.

And I can’t wait to try – I am so excited, The Professor’s . Beer and chocolate – yum!  The Professor is right; beer enhances the flavour of chocolate.

A photo of a Chocolate Caramel Tart sliced in half to reveal the inner layers of caramel, hazelnuts, dark and milk chocolate ganache and milk chocolate glaze.

I made a Chocolate Cake with Double Chocolate Stout a while back and it’s one of the best chocolate cakes I’ve ever made, intense chocolate flavour and extremely moist.

A photo of a Chocolate Caramel Tart on a white dessert dish with a decorative drizzle of caramel sauce on the dish.

I wonder how the ice cream would taste with caramel?  Hmm…Leftover caramel + The Professor’s recipe = giving it a whirl.

A photo of a Chocolate-Caramel Tart {Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello} on a white doilie.

Enjoy your weekend!

Chocolate-Caramel Tarts with Hazelnuts, Milk Chocolate Glaze and Hazelnut Praline {Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello}

Makes 6 11½-cm (4½-inch) tarts

  • Sweet Short Pastry with Hazelnuts {Pasta Frolla alle Nocciole}
  • Caramel {Caramello}
  • ¼-cup Hazelnuts, toasted, skinned and cut in half
  • Chocolate Ganache
  • Milk Chocolate Glaze {Glassa al Cioccolato di Latte}
  • Sweetened Whipped Cream, to garnish, optional
  • Hazelnut Praline, to garnish, optional

A photo of Chocolate Tarts with Caramel displayed on white doilies.

Sweet Short Pastry with Hazelnuts {Pasta Frolla alle Nocciole}

  1. Transfer pasta frolla to a clean, lightly dusted with flour work surface.
  2. Roll out pasta frolla to .33-cm (1/8-inch) thick.
  3. Cut the pasta frolla into six 15¼-cm (6-inch) rounds (work with pastry quickly). Fit the pastry rounds into the tart tins; trim off excess pastry with a sharp paring knife.  Using a fork, dock the bottoms of the pastry shells.
  4. Transfer tins to a baking sheet and chill the pastry shells in the freezer for 30 minutes.
  5. Preheat oven to 160° C (320° F).  Remove shells from freezer and line with non-stick baking paper and fill (flush to top of tins) with ceramic pie weights, rice or beans (to prevent pastry from shrinking); bake until lightly golden around edges, 20 to 25 minutes.
  6. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; remove baking paper and pie weights.  Cool for 2 minutes and then brush bottoms of pastry shells with egg wash.  Return to oven and bake until golden all over, 5 to 10 minutes.
  7. Transfer pastry shells to a wire rack and cool completely before filling.

Caramel {Caramello}

  • 230 g (1 cup) caster (superfine granules) sugar
  • 89 ml (3 ounces) liquid glucose
  • 207 ml (7 ounces) heavy cream, room temperature
  • 40 g (3 tablespoons) unsalted butter
  1. In a medium-sized saucepan, stir together sugar and glucose until combined. Cook, swirling pan occasionally over burner (do not stir), over low heat until sugar is dissolved and comes to a boil.
  2. Increase heat to medium and continue to cook until a light brown caramel.  Use a pastry brush dipped in water to wash down any crystals that form on the sides of the pan.
  3. Carefully and gradually add heavy cream, whisking constantly until smooth (no lumps of hardened sugar).
  4. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly (a few minutes).
  5. Whisk in butter until smooth and glossy.
  6. Proceed with assembling instructions below.

Chocolate Ganache

  • 126 ml (4¼ ounces) heavy cream
  • 75 g (2¾-ounces) good quality 70% chocolate, finely chopped
  • 40 g (1½-ounces) good quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
  • 21 g (1½-tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
  1. In a small saucepan set over medium heat, bring cream just to the boil.
  2. Remove from heat; add both chocolates (make sure cream is covering chocolate completely). Allow to sit for 2 minutes.
  3. Stir with a flexible rubber spatula until smooth.
  4. Add butter; stir until well combined.
  5. Proceed with assembling instructions below.

Milk Chocolate Glaze {Glassa al Cioccolato di Latte}

  • 118 ml (4-ounces) heavy cream
  • 113 g (4-ounces) good quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
  1. In a small saucepan set over medium heat, bring cream just to the boil.
  2. Remove from heat; add chocolate (make sure cream completely covers chocolate) and set-aside for 2 minutes.
  3. Using a flexible rubber spatula, stir together until glaze is smooth.  Strain glaze through a fine sieve into a small bowl (discard any solids).
  4. Proceed with assembling instructions below.

Sweetened Whipped Cream

Hazelnut Praline

Assembling Chocolate-Caramel Tarts {Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello}

  • Toasted, skinned and halved hazelnuts
  • Sweetened Whipped Cream
  • Caramel Sauce
  • Hazelnut Praline
  1. Fill cooled pastry shells with Caramel, filling just a bit more than 1/3 full. Chill tarts in refrigerator for 20 minutes to set Caramel.
  2. Remove tarts from the refrigerator.  Arrange hazelnuts on top of caramel layer.
  3. Spoon chocolate ganache over hazelnuts, filling a little more than 1/3 from the top of the pastry shell (leave enough room to add the milk chocolate glaze).
  4. Return tarts to the refrigerator to set the chocolate, about 30 minutes.
  5. Remove tarts from the refrigerator.  Spoon glaze over chocolate ganache layer. Return tarts to the refrigerator to set glaze, 20 to 30 minutes.
  6. To serve tarts, remove tarts from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.
  7. Reheat caramel until smooth and drizzling consistency.
  8. Transfer Sweetened Whipped Cream to a large pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip (Wilton 1M).  Pipe a swirl of sweetened whipped cream in the centre of the tart.
  9. Transfer Caramel to a squeeze bottle, drizzle caramel over tart and on top of sweetened cream.  (If you don’t have a squeeze bottle, drizzle caramel with a spoon – I always transfer any remaining caramel to a plastic squeeze bottle and reheat in the microwave, makes it very easy to drizzle over tarts or ice cream).
  10. Place a few pieces of Hazelnut Praline into a food processor, pulse to a coarse crumb. Sprinkle over top of tarts.
  11. Buon Appetito!

Related posts:

  1. Lemon Meringue Tarts-Tartellette alla Crema di Limone e Meringa All’Italiana
  2. Cannoncini di Sfoglia con Crema Pasticcera al Cioccolato
  3. Hazelnut, Raspberry Jam and White Chocolate Ganache Tarts
  4. Fruit Tarts
  5. Cannoli Cupcakes with Marsala-Chocolate Whipped Cream and Mini Cannoli

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Posted in Baking & Pastry, Baking Mise en Place, Custards, Creams & Mousses, Fillings, Frostings & Dessert Sauces, Pastry Doughs & Batter, Recipes

Comments (20)

20 Responses to “Chocolate-Caramel Tarts {Tartellette al Cioccolato e Caramello}”

  1. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 12:01 pm

    Looks like a winning combo to me! :)

  2. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 12:04 pm

    This looks delicious. Im sure to try this out on the weekends.

  3. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 12:37 pm

    These look delicious!!!

  4. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 1:11 pm

    These are gorgeous and look so delicious!! Great job! :)

  5. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 1:18 pm

    These look amazing! I love chocolate and caramel. I would not be able to share!

  6. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 2:32 pm

    Looks wonderful! Amazing! Yummy!

  7. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 2:32 pm

    Wow…. Just… Wow… I’m in love with your tarts… I would marry those tarts if I could… lol! Yum!

  8. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 4:16 pm

    I wish I had this kind of talent! Do you ship orders?

  9. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 4:24 pm

    chocolate…hazelnuts…caramel…this is beyond perfect! You have basically taken my favourite chocolate (the beloved ferrero rocher) and smothered it in a caramel sauce, i dont think ive seen a dessert i wanted to gobble up so much in a long time! Beautiful photography too, just plain lovely :)

  10. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 4:30 pm

    I can see why these would disappear fast. I love the hints of hazelnuts all through the dessert! It’s truly chocolate’s best friend.

  11. Grace Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 6:51 pm

    Thank you Vanessa – you are too sweet!

  12. Julia Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 7:24 pm

    Gorgeous. Just gorgeous. I’m excited with all the tart recipes I’m getting from you! Like Vanessa said, you are truly talented, I want your talent!!! No matter how hard I try I will never be as talented as you, Grace. Never. I especially don’t have the patience that you do… Great recipe looks amazing!!!

  13. Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 7:39 pm

    Stunning, Grace!

  14. Grace Says:
    July 8th, 2011 at 10:38 pm

    Thank you Julia, I get into this zone when I bake and I try to set a mood of relaxation, music playing, I measure out all my ingredients so I don’t miss anything, try to have everything I need all prepared and I do my best to keep myself focused on my task at hand. I find when I do that things are so much easier in the kitchen, especially on the days when it’s like grand central station in my house, usually mistakes happen when you get interrupted, then you get frustrated, you know what I mean? Believe me Julia you can do this!!!

  15. Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 12:46 am

    These look absolutely fab-u-lous!!!!!

  16. Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 9:04 am

    Another stunning dessert Grace – you are truly gifted!

  17. Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 4:32 pm

    Wow, these look seriously decadent – all that caramel. Delicious!

  18. Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 4:41 pm

    pure decadence….sigh I’ll take two please!
    I love chocolate tarts and add some caramel and I am in heaven! I think I gained 5 lbs just looking at those incredible images!

  19. Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 5:00 pm

    Those look amazing! Love the hazelnuts :)

  20. Grace Says:
    July 9th, 2011 at 6:29 pm

    I definitely gained the 5 lbs Dennis

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