Rocky Mountain Jew

…And one for the chocoholics

As mentioned in our previous posting, for this year’s Rosh Hashanah Foods section, the IJN let no bottle of cream go wasted, no sack of sugar untouched, and, of course, no chocolate unmelted. Debbie Foster’s apple cake, is a lovely afternoon cake, simple and seasonal. For those of you gourmands, this French-style chocolate tart, adorned perhaps with some red raspberries and a slightly sweetened cream, is sure to impress. We have to warn you though, this recipe is definitely more finicky - particularly the dough - so be prepared to set aside a few hours. It’s worth the effort, however. Pure creamy indulgence, and you’ll score points with your guests!

Chocolate Tart with a Chocolate Chip Crust from The Kosher Baker, as featured in Rosh Hashanah Foods

Note: For a dairy version, this can easily be made with the real stuff, i.e. butter, cream and milk.

Pastry dough:
1 C all-purpose flour
2/3 C confectioner’s sugar
5 tbsp. parve margarine, frozen 30 minutes and then cut into tablespoons
1 large egg yolk
2 tbsp. cold water
¼ tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Filling:
¾ C parve whipping cream
1/3 C soy milk
½ vanilla bean, scraped
12 oz. bittersweet chocolate
2 egg yolks

For the crust, place the flour, confectioner’s sugar and margarine into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process for 10 seconds, until the mixture resembles sand.  Add the egg yolk, water, and vanilla and process just until the dough comes together. Add the chopped chocolate. Place dough on a large piece of plastic wrap. Gather into a ball, cover and then flatten. Chill in the freezer one hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place an 8-inch tart ring on a parchment-covered cookie sheet. Grease the ring with a little margarine.

Remove dough from freezer and let sit until it softens a little so it can be rolled. Place a piece of plastic wrap larger than the ring on the counter and sprinkle with flour. Place dough on top.  Cover with a piece of parchment and roll on top of it to roll out the dough until it is at least one inch larger than the tart ring. Place your hand under the plastic, lift the dough and place in the tart ring using your finger to gently press the dough into the corners. Remove plastic and use a rolling pin to roll over the top to trim off excess dough.

Freeze 10 minutes. Line dough with foil or parchment and beans or pie weights. Bake for 20 minutes. Lift up the edges of the foil or parchment to remove it and the weights and bake another 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven. This can be done in advance and frozen until use.

Bring the cream, soymilk and seeds of vanilla bean to boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat and add the chopped chocolate. Let sit for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk. In a separate small bowl, whisk the eggs. Add ½ cup of the chocolate mixture and whisk in. Place this mixture into the saucepan with the chocolate and cream and whisk well. Scoop into the tart shell and bake for 25 minutes. Do not overbake. Let cool and then chill in the fridge for 3 hours or overnight.

How did these recipes turn out for you? Any resemblance to our results? Let us know! For the full Foods section, contact Carol at (303) 861-2234 or carol@ijn.com.