Have you ever added dark chocolate chips to an oatmeal cookie? If so, then you know that oatmeal and chocolate a great combo. These dark chocolate ganache tarts consist of a nut and oatmeal crust with a rich chocolate ganache filling, topped with flaky sea salt.
This Recipe is Sponsored by DeLallo. All thoughts and text are my own. Thank you for supporting the companies that help make Two Cups Flour possible.
What is Chocolate Ganache?
Chocolate ganache is a 1:1 mixture of dark baking chocolate and warm heavy cream. Pour the warm heavy cream, which I usually flavor with vanilla over the chopped chocolate and stir until smooth. The ganache is smooth and silky, perfect for topping desserts. This recipe adds butter to the ganache, to create a firmer consistency of a chocolate ganache tart filling.
Oatmeal Nut Cookie Crust
The crust for this tart is a combination of rolled oats, flour, almonds, and pecans. I finely chop or blitz the nuts in a food processor with the oats to resemble coarse almond meal. Flavor with cocoa powder, espresso powder to boost the chocolate notes, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla extract and almond extract. Resulting in a delicious tart shell that tastes like a chocolate oatmeal cookie.
Why use Espresso Powder?
To create this one bowl chocolate cake recipe, I partnered with DeLallo Foods to showcase their Instant Espresso Powder. An indispensable baking ingredient, heightening the rich chocolatey presence in baked goods without a distinct coffee flavor. I add espresso powder to all of my chocolate baking recipes for that little extra umph in the chocolate.
DeLallo’s Instant Espresso Powder is made from dark-roasted coffee beans that are brewed, dried and ground into a fine powder. When added to liquid the powder easily dissolves. For this recipe, I’ve added the espresso powder to the dark chocolate ganache and into the crust with the cocoa powder to enhance chocolate notes.
DeLallo’s instant espresso powder is not the same as actual espresso which is roasted beans that require brewing. This type of espresso is not instant and will not easily dissolve into baking ingredients.
What makes a perfect dessert?
Layers of texture with a depth of flavor keep your mouth and tastebuds entertained. The soft bittersweet ganache filling paired with a chewy cookie crust, a little crunch form the nuts, and salty finish are recipe for the perfect dessert experience.
A French Chef told me, that its the first couple of bites where you truly enjoy eating something. Therefore, to keep the tasting experience interesting add multiple textures with flavors. This balanced tart is topped with sliced figs and/or crunchy candied nuts to assure satisfaction.
Helpful Tips for Chocolate Ganache Tarts
- Use dark chocolate for a lovely balance of sweet crust and bittersweet chocolate.
- Weigh the dry ingredients for exact measurements.
- Swap the almonds and pecans for your favorite nuts at the same measurements.
- Cool the tart shells completely before pouring in the chocolate ganache.
- Chill the ganache filled tarts for a minimum of 2 hours before removing from the tart trays.
- Serve the chocolate tarts with sliced figs and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Dark Chocolate Ganache Tarts
Ingredients
Oatmeal Nut Cookie Crust
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup chopped almonds
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon Delallo espresso powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla bourbon extract
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Dark Chocolate Ganache Filling
- 1 cup bittersweet dark chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon Delallo espresso powder
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature, cut into small pieces
Toppings
- flaky sea salt
- sliced figs
- candied nuts
Instructions
Oatmeal Nut Cookie Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C) and set out 4 mini tart trays (5 inches wide) with removable bottoms. This recipe can make 4 thick crust tarts or 6 thin crust tarts. I prefer using the crust ingredients to make 4 thick crust tarts.
- Blitz oatmeal and chopped nuts for 3 seconds into to coarse pieces using a blender or food processor. Small chunks are perfect to have mixed in.
- Place the chopped nuts and oats into a medium bowl and whisk together with the flour, cocoa powder and espresso powder. Whisk in the cinnamon and cloves to distribute. in a large bowl with flour and dark brown sugar.
- Pour in the melted butter, pure vanilla extract and almond extract, stir with a rubber spatula until well mixed.
- Divide the crust mixture between 4 mini tart pans (5 inches wide). Use a spoon or finger tips to press crust into bottom and sides of each tart pan. Transfer the tarts to a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 18-22 minutes until golden and fragrant.
- Carefully remove tart trays from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
Dark Chocolate Ganache Filling
- Place chopped dark chocolate and espresso powder in a medium mixing bowl.
- Heat the heavy cream in small saucepan on medium heat until lightly bubbling. (Not a full boil). Remove cream from the heat and carefully pour over the chopped chocolate.
- Let sit for about 2 minutes, then add butter slices and whisk until smooth.
- Carefully spoon or pour the dark chocolate ganache into the cooled tart shells. If you make 4 shells instead of 6 there may be a bit of ganache left over. Save it in an air tight container in the fridge to enjoy later.
- Place the filled tart shells in the fridge for 2 hours to firm.
Top and Serve
- Remove chocolate tarts from fridge. Place a tart on an upside down juice glass with a bottom that is slightly smaller than the tart tray's removable bottom. Slowly press down until the tart ring falls around the glass. Remove the bottom of the tart pan from the cooked tart shell.
- Place the tart on a serving plate. Top with a sliced fig and sprinkle of flaky sea salt.