Chocolate - Caramel Tarts

These addictive tarts are super simple to make. They are delicious as they look and you cannot stop eating with one . I made these tarts for a get together at home and everyone loved it . It was actually finger licking good. That's how everybody ended up eating too :) .

I made these a day before allowed it to set . They were beautifully set when it was served and the tart shell held its crunchiness too . The bottom layer was  homemade salted caramel sauce and the second layer was Chocolate Sauce/  Ganache and topped with roasted Pecans.

Ingredients :

For the Tart Shell:

All Purpose Flour - 1 Cup minus 3 TBLS

Cocoa Powder - 2 TBLS

Icing Sugar - 2 TBLS

Salted Butter - 4 TBLS

Cold Milk - 2 TBLS ( or till you form a dough)

For the Salted Caramel Sauce:

Butter- 1 Cup

Sugar - 6 TBLS

Heavy Cream - 1/2 Cup

For Chocolate Sauce -

Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips - 8 oz

Heavy Cream - 3/4 Cup

Vanilla Essence - 1 TSP

Instructions:

How to make the Tart Shell:

- Combine all the dry ingredients together.
- Mix the cold butter with the dry ingredients . I t will be looking crumbly
- Lastly add the cold milk and mix .  knead it for a minute .
- Wrap the dough in a cling wrap and refrigerate it till you use it .

How to Bake the Tart:

- Pre heat the oven at 350F.
-Roll out the dough . Shape the dough really thin in a muffin pan ( As we do for Pies)
- Place some parchment paper over each tart shell and keep some nuts over it .
- Bake it for 12 Minutes . Take the parchment paper and nuts out from the tart and bake it again for 5 minutes.
- Once they are baked . take it from the oven.
-Allow it to rest on the muffin pan for 5 minutes and then keep it in the cooling rack allow it to cool down completely .

How to Make the Salted Caramel Sauce : Click for the Instructions

How to Make the Chocolate Sauce :

- Place the chocolate chips in a bowl.
- In another heavy bottom pan boil the heavy cream , when the fresh cream comes to the boiling stage remove from heat and immediately pour it on top of the chocolate chips.
- Keep it stirring till the chocolate gets melted.
- Allow the chocolate sauce to set . Refrigerate it .

How to Assemble the Tarts:

-  Take a tart shell . Scoop a spoonful of  caramel sauce into the tarts.
- Level the caramel sauce .
- Then take another scoop of chocolate sauce place it over the caramel sauce.
- Level the chocolate sauce .
- Garnish it with Roasted Pecans or any nuts to your preference.
- Refrigerate the tarts till you serve them.

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Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce

I have never imagined that i would do a Salted Caramel Sauce at home. Once when i was going through the google images about the Chocolate Cake with Caramel butter cream frosting  , i was tempted to give it a try ;)  .. When i was making the Caramel Sauce , the house smelled soooo good.

This is the recipe for the Caramel Sauce :

Ingredients you need :

Granulated Sugar - 1 Cup
Salted Butter - 6 TBLS ( Room Temperature )
Heavy Cream - 1/2 Cup ( Room Temperature )


 For those who are going to do it for the first time , here are few tips to be noted:

• Try to use a big Heavy Bottom Saucepan.That will be easy to handle the sauce because when you add the butter and the cream , the caramel will bubble up badly.
• Keep Stirring the sugar initially to help it to melt at the beginning, but stop stirring it once it has completely melted .It is just to keep it from seizing.
•  The caramel should be  reddish brown in color and it should have just started to smoke.This is when you add the butter into it.

 Instructions :

 1.Add the sugar in a Large Heavy Bottom saucepan .Heat the sugar in a  medium high heat. Keep stirring it.Once the sugar starts to melt  , you will be able to the sugar starts sticking on the sides and it will form clumps. It just happens, do not worry about it . Keep whisking it and it will melt down completely.

2.Once the sugar is completely melted ,it will reach a amber color with a beautiful aroma.  This is the point where you have to keep watching the caramel very carefully as it can go from perfect caramel to burnt in a matter of seconds.

3. This is the stage when you add the butter. Be very careful at this stage because the butter bubbles up.Keep stirring the caramel mixture till the butter is totally melted.

4. Once the butter is totally melted , Remove the saucepan from the heat . Add the Cream into the Caramel. Whisk it thoroughly until Cream gets incorporated with the Caramel.

 

5. One the Cream is incorporated completely , that is the sign that your Salted Caramel Sauce is ready for use.....let it cool to the room temperature.

 

Once it is cool the Caramel Sauce tend to go harder than before. You can store the Sauce up to 2 weeks. If you are going to use it , just warm it up a bit .