Incredibly Rich Chocolate Tart

Yes, this is a very rich indulgent chocolate tart to impress your guests.
However, it's so easy to make. You can even take a short cut using shop bought pastry.
Sprinkle sea salt to give the tart an extra special intense flavour.

Just enjoy. ;)

Ingredients (for 20cm pie dish)

For the pastry 

• 150g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 125g chilled unsalted butter, cubed
• 25g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp water

·    

For the chocolate filling

• 200 ml double cream
• 1tsp caster sugar 
• A pinch of fine sea salt 
• 25g unsalted butter, softened 
• 150g 70% cocoa chocolate, broken into small pieces 
• 30ml whole milk

Some sea salt flakes to decorate 

Making the pastry:

1. In a large bowl, rub together the flour and butter with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs (or use a food processor). Stir in the sugar. Add the water and work the mixture with a fork, bringing it together to form a soft dough. 

2. Turn out on to a lightly-floured work surface and shape into a disc. Wrap in cling film. Chill for 1 hour. 

3. On a lightly-floured surface, roll out the chilled dough until 5mm (1/4in) thick. Carefully transfer to a 20cm (8in) tart tin. Press the dough into the tin, trim the edges and patch up any holes with excess dough. Chill for 30 mins. 

4. Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan 160°C. 

5. Line the tart shell with foil and fill with blind baking weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes, remove the weights and foil, and bake for a further five minutes. Leave the pastry to cool completely.

Making the chocolate filling:

1. Put the cream, sugar and salt in a pan and bring to the boil. Remove as soon as the mixture boils up. Off the heat, add the butter and chocolate. Stir until blended.
2. Take a couple of minutes to cool the mixture, then stir in the milk. Keep stirring till shiny. Pour into the tart shell and leave at room temperature for 2 hours to set.
3. Sprinkle some sea salt flakes. 

Chocolate Meringue Pie

This is my updated classic Chocolate Meringue Pie.
I very much enjoyed the chocolate meringue pie which my friend baked as the finale of her Sunday lunch that she invited me to. For me, it was the first time that I tasted the velvety chocolate filling with a crunchy but "melting in your mouth" meringue combination. I just loved it.
Apparently, that was her mum's classic "Sunday dinner pudding" which she often requested when she was little. I realise how clever the recipe is as whole eggs are used in different components of one pudding.
No waste.
I was inspired by this lovely flavour and texture combo, so I created this even more chocolaty pie.
Chocolate pastry gives the pie a more sophisticated flair.

Ingredients

Chocolate Pastry: 

• 120 g plain flour
• 15 g cocoa powder
• 20 g icing sugar
• pinch of salt
• 60 g butter, diced
• 4–5 teaspoons cold water 

Chocolate Filling:

• 3 egg yolks 
• 110 g caster sugar 
• 3 Tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted
• 1 Tablespoon cornflour
• pinch of salt
• 300ml milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Orange zest (optional)

Meringue:

• 3 egg whites
• 150g caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon cornflour 

• 40 g dark chocolate, grated, plus extra to decorate (optional)

Make the pastry: 

1. Add the flour, cocoa, sugar and butter to a large bowl, then rub in with your fingertips or an electric mixer until you have fine crumbs. 
2. Mix in enough water to form a soft but not sticky dough. Roll out on a floured surface to fit a fluted loose-bottomed tart tin, 20 cm in diameter, 5 cm deep. (I used two small tart dishes: 13 cm in diameter, 3.5 cm deep)
3. Prick the base with a fork and chill for 15 minutes. Bake the tart blind for 10 minutes in a preheated 180°C fan oven. Remove the paper and beans and bake for a further 5 minutes.

Make the Chocolate Filling: 

1. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, cocoa powder and cornflour together in a large bowl. 
2. Pour the milk into a saucepan and bring to the boil. 
3. Gradually whisk the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture and then pour it back into the saucepan, whisking constantly until it thickens. Stir in the vanilla, (and zest of orange if you prefer) then pour into the tart case.

Make the Meringue: 

1. Whisk the egg whites and lemon juice until stiff, then gradually whisk in the remaining sugar until it has all been added. 
2. Add cornflour and keep whisking until the meringue is very thick. 
3. Then fold in the grated chocolate for a chocolatey meringue (optional).

Spoon the meringue over the pie, shape into swirls, then bake at 140°C, for 40 minutes until the meringue is slightly golden and crispy on top. 

Cool slowly in the oven by leaving the oven door ajar at least for one hour. 

Before serving, sprinkle with grated chocolate to decorate.

Chocolate Mousse Cake

Here is what I decided to call "Chocolate Mousse Cake" as it was actually accidentally made.

I was planning to make chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache for a Birthday cake.

However, by mistake, I used almost double the amount of cream and the chocolate ganache ended up like a chocolate milkshake. Hmmmm..... how could I rescue this? 

So, I decided to whip the chocolate cream to thicken it. And... Voila!  It turned out a nice and light chocolate mousse texture. 

In fact this "chocolate mousse" went very nicely with the light genoese sponge I made. 

I'm very chuffed. ;) 

It has a smooth soft texture when made, but it becomes more like truffle when it firms up next day... if you still have any next day. 

INGREDIENTS for the cake  

• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 125g (4oz) caster sugar
• 100g (3½oz) plain flour
• 30g (1oz) cocoa powder
• 25ml vegetable oil

INGREDIENTS for the chocolate mousse filling

• 100g dark chocolate
• 200ml double cream

METHOD

1. Heat the oven to 180°C (gas mark 4). Lightly grease a 20cm round cake tin and line the base with non-stick baking paper. Alternatively spray the tin with vegetable oil.
2. Whisk the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until the mixture is pale, fluffy and almost doubled in volume. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and a pinch of salt and use a large metal spoon to carefully fold in the dry ingredients.
3. Pour the vegetable oil carefully from the edge of the bowl and mix all together gently.
4. Tip the mixture gently into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes, or until risen and firm to the touch. A skewer inserted into the centre of the cake should come out clean.
5. Set aside to cool. When cold, slice the cake in half and spread the bottom half with jam or chocolate mousse filling. Place the other half on top and pile and decorate with the chocolate mousse filling. 

·      Chocolate Mousse

1. Pour the double cream into a bowl and heat in the microwave (2 minutes or so).
2. Remove from the microwave and put the chocolate in the cream to melt. You don’t need to re-heat it as the temperature of the cream should be hot enough to melt the chocolate.  Keep stirring until the chocolate has completely melted in the cream. Then cool it down to room temperature.
3. Whisk the chocolate cream mixture until nice and thick. Do not over whisk as it may turn to a buttery spread!
4. Spread the chocolate mousse over the cake and sprinkle cocoa powder for a matt finish. 

Chocolate Swirl Meringues

This is a very easy recipe for rather impressive looking meringues. Crispy exterior and marshmallow interior.
These meringues are roughly 8 cm, but you can make a lot more meringue kisses for fun.

MAKES 16 MERINGUES

•   4 medium egg whites (at room temperature)  

•   1 tsp of lemon juice

•   225g (8oz) caster sugar

•   1 tsp cornflour

MAKES 12 MERINGUES

•   3 medium egg whites (at room temperature)

•   1 tsp of lemon juice

•   168g (6oz) caster sugar

•   1 tsp cornflour

MAKES 8 MERINGUES

•   2 medium egg whites (at room temperature)

•   ½ tsp of lemon juice

•   112.5g (4oz) caster sugar

•   ½ tsp cornflour

AND, melted chocolate. 

I melted 100g dark chocolate in the microwave for 12 meringues. It's up to you how chocolatey you would like your meringues. 

1.   Preheat the oven to 130°C, (fan 110°C).

2.   Get a really clean medium bowl. If it is not spotlessly clean, it may mean that the egg whites don’t whip up properly. This goes for all the equipment.

3.   Tip the egg whites into the bowl, squeeze the lemon juice in and then whisk to a medium peak.

4.   Next add a spoonful of the sugar to the meringue and whisk really hard until all of the sugar has ‘dissolved’ and the mixture starts to look a bit shiny. Then add the remaining sugar gradually, while whisking all the time, until the mixture becomes really shiny and very stiff.

5.   Finally, whisk in the cornflour for a second or two until smooth. This gives the meringue a marshmallow texture inside.

6.   Drizzle the melted chocolate and gently fold the mixture. Don't "mix" it, but make a "marble" like pattern with the chocolate. Dollop blobs of the mixture onto the oven proof paper. You can drizzle more melted chocolate on each meringue at this stage.

7.   Bake in the oven for at least 40 minutes. Cool in the oven with the door ajar for at least 2 hours.

8.   Once the meringues are ready, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.