Black Forest Tarts (chocolate cherry)
A twist on the black forest cake, these tarts have the perfect chocolate crust, a layer of raspberry jam, sweet cherries, whipped cream and chocolate shards! Much easier to make than it looks, it is a sophisticated and simple dessert at the same time.
Servings 8 individual tarts
Ingredients
For the chocolate crust:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold and in small pieces
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ice water see Notes below
For the filling:
- 8 tablespoons raspberry jam
- 2 to 3 cups fresh cherries pitted and cut in half or fourths
For the whipped cream:
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons sour cream or cream cheese
- 3 to 4 tablespoons powdered sugar
For decoration:
- whole cherries
- chocolate shavings
Instructions
For the chocolate pie crust:
- In the food processor: Place 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, pinch of salt and ⅓ cup powdered sugar in the bowl and pulse a few times to combine. Add ½ cup unsalted butter, cold and in cubes, and pulse a few times to mix. The butter should be roughly the size of peas.
- Add 1 egg yolk and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, if using, and pulse a few times until the mixture moistens. Be careful not to start forming a ball of dough.
- By hand: stir 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, pinch of salt and ⅓ cup powdered sugar in a large bowl until combined. Scatter ½ cup unsalted butter cubes on top. Use your hands or a pastry cutter to incorporate them into the flour until the butter is the size of peas.
- Add 1 egg yolk and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, if using, and mix with a fork until moistened. The dough will be irregular and floury, as it's harder to incorporate evenly by hand.
- For both methods: dump the shaggy mass onto a counter or working surface. Use your hands to gently gather the dough into a pile and press it together with your palms, then fold it over on itself. You can use a dough scraper to help lift and fold it. At first, it will appear to never bind or come together properly. But it will. Keep turning it onto itself and using your until you have a ball of dough. The key is to use a gentle touch and avoid overworking the dough. You should still see some marbled bits of butter in the dough; this is what will make your crust flaky. If it's impossible to make a dough ball, drizzle a tablespoon of ice water on the dry mixture.
- Wrap it in a plastic or freezer bag and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Roll and line 8 individual 4-inch tartlets or 1 large 9-inch pie. Prick the surface with a fork and freeze them for 10 minutes. For more detailed instructions, see the chocolate pie crust post.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Place pieces of aluminum foil (larger than the molds) over each tartlet and press down with ceramic pie weights or dry ingredients that don't burn, like chickpeas, rice or flour. Blind bake the crusts for 10-12 minutes, remove the weight, and continue baking for another 10 minutes or until dry and fully baked.
- Let them cool completely on a wire rack before removing and assembling.
To assemble:
- Have 2 to 3 cups fresh cherries pitted and cut in half.
- Remove the tart shells from the pans and put the tarts on a flat surface. Add 1 tablespoon raspberry jam to each one. Top with cherry halves.
- Top the fruit with the whipped cream. Refrigerate the finished tarts for half an hour before serving.
- End with a few whole cherries on top and chocolate shavings.
For the whipped cream:
- In a large bowl beat 1 ½ cups heavy cream with 2 tablespoons sour cream or cream cheese and 3 to 4 tablespoons powdered sugar. I like the cream to be thick but soft, so I beat it to medium peaks. But you can go all the way like chantilly cream and beat it to firm peaks.
- Be careful it doesn't curdle. This happens if it's overbeaten. You might want to beat it with an electric mixer until you're almost there and then end it by hand, with a whisk.
Notes
Some ingredients are aproximate because you might like more cream or more cherries. It's a matter of personal taste.
Tart shells: you can have them ready a few days in advance. Keep them in a tightly closed jar or tin (preferably). You can also have them lined in the tart pans, pricked and frozen for several days before baking them.
Cherries: if using frozen or canned (I recommend fresh but sometimes it's not the season and this is a festive tart!) make sure you drain them before adding.
