This tart is a wonderful special occasion dessert. The filling is luxurious with silky texture. The pâte sablée crust is golden and tender with delicate shortbread texture. It is rich indeed, so serve it with extra strawberries, a dollop of whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream.Pâte sablée is a classic element in French pastry; a dough primarily used for making tart shells with a delicate, crumbly, shortbread texture. It’s easily made in a food processor, which is the method outlined in this recipe. If you don’t have a food processor, see the recipe notes for making this dough by hand.
10purchased chocolate trufflesI used Harry & David
Mini white and dark chocolate tabletssee blog post for mold link
Instructions
Pâte sablée crust
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Pulse to combine. Add the butter cubes on top of the flour mixture and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse, pea-size crumbs.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla extract until lightened in color (about 3-5 minutes of whisking).
Pour the egg mixture in the food processor. Pulse in short bursts until the dough just comes together. If you find the mixture is too crumbly or lacking moisture to form a cohesive dough, add ice water 1 tablespoon at a time while pulsing repeatedly. The dough should form a rough, shaggy mass to one side of the processor bowl.
Remove the dough from the bowl and form into a disc; cover with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375F.
Lightly spritz a 10.5 or 11-inch tart pan with cooking spray. (Skip this step if you are using a non-stick tart pan.) Place a large sheet of parchment paper on a work surface. Roll the dough into a large circle about 1/4 inch thick. Pick up the dough on the paper and turn it over onto the tart pan; remove the paper. Tamp the crust down into the pan, gently lifting the dough when needed to fit it into the corners of the fluted pan. Use a knife to trim away the excess overhanging dough.
Cover the dough in the pan with a piece of parchment paper and fill with pie weights (I use 3 cups of brown rice as pie weights). Bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges of the tart crust are golden. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan 10 minutes. Remove the pie weights and parchment; cool crust completely.
Chocolate truffle filling
Place the chopped chocolate in a large mixing bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until it begins to simmer; do not boil. Immediately pour over chocolate.
Allow the chocolate and cream to sit undisturbed for about 5 minutes. Whisk to combine. Add the butter and mix again until melted and the ganache is consistent and glossy.
Pour the ganache into crust and smooth out any bubbles. Chill uncovered until set, at least 1 hour or overnight.
Décors
Melt the white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl at 100% power in 30 second intervals until the chocolate can be stirred smooth. Transfer to a piping bag or zip-top bag with a tiny hole snipped in one corner. Pipe chocolate while moving your hand in a quick back-and-forth motion so that the chocolate lands in overlapping lines to one side of the tart.
Top the white lines with the strawberries, truffles, and chocolate pieces. Serve the tart at room temperature. Store the tart in the refrigerator.
Serve this tart with any of these accompaniments: extra strawberries, red berry coulis, whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream to cut the richness.
Notes
Pâte sablée by hand: Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the cold butter. Rub the butter into the flour using your fingers, as you would a biscuit or scone dough. Mix the egg, sugar and vanilla as directed. Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and gently knead together until a consistent dough forms. Do not over-knead. Let rest as directed and continue with rolling and baking instructions.
Keyword chocolate truffle tart, chocolate truffles, easy chocolate tart, ganache tart, pate sablee, pate sablee crust, valentine's day dessert, white chocolate ganache