Chocolate Raspberry Tart

This is a fancy French-style chocolate tart with raspberries in it. A decadent dessert for a special occasion like Valentine's Day, no doubt.

Chocolate and berries are a fantastic combination! Unsurprisingly, the white chocolate raspberry bundt cake is one of the most popular recipes on this blog.

With just the right amount of filling - the easiest thing ever to put together - it's a dessert that will woo everyone, and let me tell you, it can be stretched. It will feed many.

That's the beauty of this raspberry chocolate ganache tart recipe. A sliver goes a long way.

If you love chocolate, this dessert is good. So good, it's great.

The pie crust

I use my favorite pie crust or Sweet Shortcrust Pastry, and there's a post devoted to it with step-by-step images, videos, and instructions.

It is easy to handle, can be frozen, made ahead, and stands up well with most fillings. The pairing of chocolate and raspberry works wonderfully with it. 

• Pricking: the bottom is pricked with a fork (image below) to help avoid puffiness when baking due to the trapped air.
• Blind-baking the dough: this means pre-baking it. It's a step that will create a layer between the pie crust and the filling to prevent it from becoming soggy. Find detailed instructions and photos for how to blind-bake a tart crust.
• Tart pans (or quiche pans) have a removable bottom and shorter sides than traditional pie dishes.

The chocolate filling ingredients

It has few ingredients, so use the best quality you can afford. 

• Chocolate: use your favorite dark semi-sweet chocolate for this recipe. I love using Callebaut 54% dark chocolate callets and Ghirardelli Chocolate Dark Bar 60%.
• Cream: use regular, full-fat like double or heavy cream. They are richer and smoother. 
• Milk: whole will make the filling richer and is my first choice, but you can use reduced-fat milk.
• Raspberries: I use fresh whenever I can, but frozen berries also work and are available year-round. 
• Eggs: fresh, large.

How to make a chocolate raspberry tart

The filling is very simple to put together.

It's a smooth chocolate ganache enriched with eggs, yolk, and some milk to lighten it up. 

Making the ganache

• Chopped chocolate: make sure the pieces are small. This way, they will melt easily when the cream is added.
• Heating the cream: it's heated until bubbles appear, which signals it's about to break into a boil. It is immediately poured over the chocolate. The hot liquid will melt the chocolate enough to mix into a smooth cream, but not so much as to burn it. That is the key. 
• Microwave: you can heat the cream in the microwave, of course.

Mix the chocolate pieces with the hot cream and add the milk to lighten the preparation.

Stir the eggs (don't beat) for a rich and creamy truffle-like chocolate filling. 

Scatter the raspberries in the partially baked tart crust.

Carefully pour the chocolate mixture. It should cover it well. The tart is ready to be baked.

Vintage Kitchen tip: don't be tempted to add more raspberries as you might find that you have leftover chocolate ganache filling left.

Be careful when pouring the cream over the berries (image below).

It will level out while baking but not too much. So make sure the raspberries are as evenly covered and distributed as possible. 

Do you see how insanely good this tart looks even while making it? Just pouring that luscious filling is enough to get my juices going!

Raspberries

Here are the two most common questions that you make:

Type of chocolate

The chocolate you use will be strongly felt in this filling, affecting the overall chocolate flavor.

For a more intense flavor, use 60% to 70% dark or semi-sweet chocolates like Ghirardelli Chocolate Dark Bar 60%,  Green & Black's dark chocolate 70%, and Ghirardelli 72% intense dark chocolate. The higher the percentage of cocoa, the less sweet the chocolate is.

For a milder flavor, you might want a less bitter one such as Callebaut 54% chocolate callets.

The % I talk about here is the amount of cocoa solids chocolate has. The higher the number, the more bitter the chocolate. Milk chocolate might have around 30% solids and more sugar to make up for it. 

Variations 

You can make a few changes to this recipe and get great results.

• Chocolate crust: use a chocolate pie crust instead of the regular tart dough.
• Quick crumb crust: use the traditional graham cracker crust. It makes for a very easy-to-put-together dessert. 
• Raspberry jam: spread a thin layer in the bottom of the crust before adding the chocolate custard. It'll add flavor and sweetness. Raspberry preserves also work, but it's chunkier.
• Berries: use a mix of red berries or strawberries instead of raspberries.
• Citrus and liquor: add orange/tangerine zest and a tablespoon of orange liquor (such as Cointreau or Grand Marnier) to the filling, and use toasted walnuts or hazelnuts instead of the raspberries. 
• Vanilla extract: add ½ a teaspoon to the ganache for a mellower flavor. I use pure vanilla extract or pure vanilla paste when available, but a good vanilla essence (artificially flavored) also works and is infinitely cheaper. 
• Individual tart shells: instead of a large tart, make small ones as we do with the black forest tartlets.

Kitchen notes

• Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
• Baking time: keep in mind that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look the same or very similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer(like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust. 
• Tart dough: use our sweet shortcrust pastry or your favorite butter pie crust. They can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for several weeks.
• Substitutions: use almond or coconut milk instead of regular milk. Use another berry, such as blackberries or strawberries.
• Storing: keep leftovers in the refrigerator, always well covered in plastic wrap to prevent dryness.