Chocolate Tart with Biscoff Crust

Decadent chocolate ganache fills a press-in crust with deep caramel flavor, making this tart a delicious alternative to a box of chocolates for your loves, yourself, and everyone else you will be treating on Valentine’s Day. While this tart can be made any time of year, we find ourselves in midwinter, when citrus practically demands to be included in sweets.  The richness of the ganache pairs perfectly with candied blood orange and mandarin slices, plus a few pieces of pizzelles, though the choice of topping is completely up to you. The combination of chocolate, caramel notes, and citrus I find absolutely irresistible.

Making ganache involves pouring hot cream over plenty of chopped chocolate, which is as straightforward and satisfying as it sounds.  I use mainly bittersweet with a touch of milk chocolate and another touch of honey.  The liquid ganache is then poured into a cooled crust and allowed to set.  After that point, top to your delight and serve in thin slices, as this is an incredibly rich, truffle-like dessert.

Ingredients

Press-In Crust

32 Biscoff cookies (1, 8.8 ounce package) – or just under 2 ¼ cups preferred cookie crumbs
6 tablespoons melted butter

Ganache Filling

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, about 60 percent cacao
2 ounces milk chocolate
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon honey
⅛ teaspoon kosher salt

Candied Oranges

2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 blood orange
2 to 3 mandarin oranges

How to Make the Biscoff Crust

A 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom will be used for this recipe.  Before serving, the sides can be removed for the prettiest presentation.

While any crust can be used for this recipe, I prefer the deep caramel flavor of Biscoff or similar cookies, especially when topping the tart with candied citrus. A package of Biscoff cookies will yield about 2 ¼ cups of fine crumbs, and an equal amount of your favorite cookies can be used as a substitute if preferred.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Process the cookies in a food processor until they are fine crumbs.  Stir in 6 tablespoons melted butter until well-combined.  Spoon into the bottom of the tart pan and press into the bottom and up the sides.  A measuring cup or similarly shaped kitchen tool can be used to assist with forming the crust.

Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the crust is fragrant and toasty but not too dark.  Set aside to cool completely.

How to Make the Ganache

Chop the bittersweet and milk chocolate finely and add to a heatproof bowl.

Heat the cream, honey, and salt in a small saucepan over medium until bubbles form around the edges. 

Pour hot cream over the chocolate and let sit for 5 minutes.  Whisk gently until the mixture becomes smooth and glossy, trying not to incorporate air bubbles along the way.

While still very liquid, pour the ganache into cooled crust.  Let sit briefly until the ganache begins to cool, as this will make it easier to transfer to the refrigerator.

Chill for about 2 hours or until the ganache is set. 

How to Make Candied Orange Slices

This step can be done in advance so the slices have time to dry, though if the slices are somewhat syrupy when the tart is served, this can also be quite delicious.

Begin by cutting the ends from each orange and slicing the rest of the fruit into ⅛-inch rounds. Fill a large pan with the water. Add the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the orange slices in a single layer, and cook for 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until even the pith is translucent, about 40 minutes. Flip slices every 15 minutes. Lower heat as syrup reduces to maintain a simmer. Transfer the orange slices, allowing excess syrup to fall back into the pan, to a cooling rack and dry. Their texture will remain tacky even when dry. If making the citrus on the same day as the tart, you may wish to put them in the refrigerator to dry more quickly.

Drain the thickened syrup from the pan while still hot and reserve for drinks.

How to Top and Serve

Before serving, allow the tart to sit at room temperature for about ten minutes, during which time you can top with candied citrus slices, pizzelle pieces as shown, or any combination of berries, caramel, or preferred chocolate pairings.  While ganache becomes more matte in the refrigerator, as the tart warms up again, the glossiness of the ganache will return.

Slice thinly and enjoy.