Saturday, June 12, 2010

Walnut Chocolate Tart

Today's dessert is brought to you by the letter "W". The letter "W" stands for walnuts. And warm. And wickedly wonderful! All words that describe this delicious and incredibly easy dessert. Just a handful of simple ingredients, many I know I always have on hand, and I am sure you do too. In no time at all you can have this fabulous dessert baked and cooling on your counter.

I found the recipe for this for tart on the Taste of Home website. My daughter gets their magazine and is always telling me about this or that great meal or baked good. I forget now what I started looking for the day I came across this recipe, I think it was savory tarts, but when I saw the recipe for this tart,  I knew I had to make it.

It calls for a simple to make tart crust, that whips up in minutes. But, you could use your own favorite tart crust as long as you prebake it. Then, cook up some butter, brown sugar, dark corn syrup and heavy cream, pour the cooked mixture over a couple of cups of chopped walnuts and put the whole thing back in the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes and, voila! One, simple, delicious, warm (and it is better warm, trust me on that!)

The only change I made to the recipe was I added mini chocolate chips. Everything is better with chocolate, right?  and as good as this recipe sounded, I thought it would be better with a little bit of chocolate.  I added about 3/4 of a cup of mini chips to the freshly baked crust when I first took it out of the oven. The chips softened and anchored the walnuts that you fill the baked crust with.

The hubby had his doubts when I first told him what was for dessert. Walnut tart? Walnuts in a tart shell? As always, I told him to trust me. He was blown away by it. Said it was one of the best desserts I have made. And, you know what? He might have been right! Give it a try. I have posted the recipe as I found it on the website. Make it that way, or add the chocolate chips. Either way, I don't think you will be disappointed. :)
One last note...thank you all for the kind and thoughtful words you left me after my last post. It warms my heart to know that there are so many people "out there" who care about me and what I am going through. It's nice to be back. :)

Ingredients
  • 1/3 cup butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour

  • FILLING:
  • 2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts
  • 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup butter, cubed
  • 1/4 cup dark corn syrup
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, divided

Directions

  • In a small bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolk. Gradually add flour just until blended (mixture will be crumbly).
  • Press onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. tart pan with removable bottom. Place pan on baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 12-14 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.
  • Sprinkle nuts over crust. In a small heavy saucepan, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup and 2 tablespoons of cream. Boil and stir over medium heat for 1 minute longer. Pour over walnuts.
  • Return pan to baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.
  • In a small bowl, beat remaining cream until stiff peaks form. Serve tart at room temperature with whipped cream. Yield: 10-12 servings.

    Editor's Note: An 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking pan may be used instead of a tart pan.

10 comments:

  1. What a gorgeous tart Susan! I don't personally like walnuts but this tart is so pretty I might have to make it just for fun. I'm sure I can find someone to take it off my hands :) So good to see you posting!

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  2. It's so nice to have you back...and with such a great recipe! I know Mark would just love this one, so I will make it for him soon. He loves pecan pie, and this walnut tart sounds like it would be a big hit. It looks so pretty.

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  3. This reminds me of a derby pie served in Ky for the derby. I think they have some amazing recipes at Taste of Home. I have bookmarked this recipe and will give it a try at my cooking club in the Fall. I have been on a kick to bake and cook form Ina's cookbooks this summer. I am posting on Friday a wonderful berry muffin. Loved them and I am not a muffin person but I could not stop eating them. No wonder my shorts do not button today:-)
    Joyce

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  4. This sounds fabulous, and looks especially delicious with the ice cream!

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  5. Hi! Looks delicious! My husband would love this one. Pecan pie is his favorite!!

    Your posts always bring a smile to my face, so good to see this one!

    Love the photo on the deck railing, my favorite place to photograph. Outdoor light is so wonderful.

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  6. I love that this is similar to pecan pie, but much, much healthier, since there's no eggs. ;) bwah!
    And I totally LOVE that you added chocolate! I would SO love this tart! And you could probably use all kinds of nuts.

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  7. That looks wonderful! The chocolate addition is great!

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  8. This looks yummy, Susan! I think practically everything is better with chocolate, so I would have loved a piece of this. I was glad to see you pop up in my reader!

    How funny that your son-in-law is Danish! My father was Danish and he and my mom lived in Denmark right after they got married. It's my first trip to Denmark and I've really enjoyed seeing the country.

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  9. Walnuts and chocolate...what's not to love?!

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  10. Nice to see you back with a great looking tart. Good idea adding the mini chips.
    Mimi

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Please feel free to comment. I love hearing from others.