Chocolate Raspberry Tart

After enduring a Christmas Eve so hot it ended inside the pool, I´ve been dodging the kitchen like the plague. At some point it´s said to have been 44ºC, that´s 111ºF. Wether it was true or not, it felt like the day from hell that will haunt us from now on. Oh yes, this christmas day will be remembered because of the weather.

Holidays during the summer are great, because they´re exactly that, holidays. Life happens outside so the atmosphere is inevitably festive, the days are long, you get some presents and eat good food. A few extra days off, sort of a pre-summer vacation.

Now it´s time to think about the next stop in the calendar, the last one. But first I will tell you about the tart I made for our sweltering gathering on Monday night. 

And before that, I will tell you that too many frozen margaritas during such a hot night does not bode a nice and happy rise the next day. Just saying.

But the dessert was good. So good it was great. 

And by then we had had the magical idea of eating it inside with the a/c on. 

Why didn´t we eat dinner inside too you might ask? Well, everything was set up to happen outside, in total accordance with the date and the season. We just couldn´t bring ourselves to change it. But after the turkey was gone, the un-breathable air and waterfalls running down everybody´s faces kind of made the decision.

This is a fancy chocolate tart with fresh raspberries in it. The filling is the easiest thing to put together and it´s a dessert that will woo everyone, and let me tell you, it can be stretched. It will feed many. That´s the beauty of dark chocolate and red fruit. A sliver goes a long way.

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY TART

adapted from Simply Sensational Desserts, by Francois Payard

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients

One 9-inch (24cm) prebaked tart shell made from Sweet Tart Dough (recipe here)

8oz (225g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

¾ cup heavy cream

¾ cup whole milk

1 egg

1 egg yolk

10oz (300g) fresh raspberries

Directions

Preheat oven to 350ºF /180ºC.

Put chopped chocolate in a large mixing bowl.

Heat together milk and cream until very hot but doesn´t come to a boil. Pour over chocolate, wait 1 minute and then start stirring with a whisk from the center out. The mixture will come together and be shiny and smooth. Let mixture stand 5 minutes.

Add egg and egg yolk. Mix well and pour into pre-baked pie shell.

Drop fresh berries into chocolate mixture, distributing them evenly.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until edges are set but center still jiggles. Let cool on wire rack.

Serve at room tº, dusted with powdered sugar.