Chocolate Hazelnut Tarts with Salted Caramel

*4 Individual tarts (4-inch in size)*

**Ingredients**

**For the Pastry Dough**

113g Unsalted Butter, cut into pieces

85g Granulated Sugar

56g Raw Hazelnuts

1 Egg

255g All-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

¼ tsp Salt

**For the Ganache Filling**

56g Dark chocolate, chopped (60-70% cacao)

59ml Heavy cream

1 tbsp Unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 tsp Espresso powder

**For the Salted Caramel Glaze**

170g Granulated sugar

2 tbsp Water

1/8 tsp Cream of tartar

3 tbsp Unsalted butter, cut into tbsp pats

88ml Heavy cream

½ tsp Kosher sea salt

Fleur de Sel (Flaky Sea Salt), for garnish

56g Toasted chopped hazelnuts, for garnish

Fresh raspberries, for garnish (optional)

**Special Equipment**

Individual-size Tart Pans about 10cm in size

Food Processor

**Method**

**1** First make the pastry dough – whiz the butter, sugar, and hazelnuts in a food processor until just finely chopped and incorporated. Add the egg and pulse until mixed together, scrape down the sides with a spatula. Sprinkle in the flour and process for a few seconds until the dough just comes together (adding 1 tablespoon of cold water if it seems too dry). Turn out onto a floured surface, bringing together with hands to shape into a flat disc. Wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes until firm to the touch.

**2** Preheat Oven to 90ºC. Take dough out of the fridge and let come to temp slightly, 10-15 minutes. Lightly grease tart pans and roll out the pastry on a floured work surface to 3mm thick. Use pans to measure and cut 2.5cm larger than pan to account for sides.

**3** Gently lift dough into shell, pressing to fit into fluted sides. Cut overhang by taking a rolling pin over the top to trim extra dough. Repeat with remaining tins. Prick the base with a fork and rest for 20 minutes in the fridge. (they should be really firm and cold.)

**4** Meanwhile prepare salted caramel – in a large sauce pan over medium heat, whisk cream of tartar, sugar and water and stir to combine. Mixture should resemble a wet sand, add one tablespoon more water if needed.

**5** Cook without stirring, gently swirling pan as needed, until sugar begins to caramelize and turn a deep amber colour, about 8-10 minutes\*.

**6** Remove from heat and carefully whisk in butter, one tablespoon at a time, until incorporated. Pour in cream and season with salt. Transfer to a glass measuring cup to cool slightly before pouring into shells.

**7** Bake the rested tarts for 15 minutes until golden. Cool slightly on a wire rack. When cool to the touch, fill halfway with salted caramel and pop into fridge to cool until firm (20-30 minutes).

**8** Meanwhile prepare your Ganache filling, placing a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Melt chocolate along with heavy cream and butter until melted and smooth. Season with espresso powder and remove from heat, set aside to cool slightly.

**9** Pour cooled ganache into caramel filled tarts and refrigerate again for 20-30 minutes until firm to the touch.

**10** Garnish with an extra drizzling of caramel sauce, fleur de sel, chopped hazelnuts and fresh raspberries, if using. Serve chilled.

**Tip:** \*Caramel making can be tricky but the key here is to not stir but swirl the pan – another great tip is to keep a pastry brush in hot water handy for when you swirl. Dip pastry brush into pan and run along the sides of the pan to melt caramel back into pan and prevent crystallization for a perfectly smooth sauce.

**Tip:** A bench-scraper and an offset spatula are great tools for dough-making and will help you easily lift dough and keep it from sticking to your surface.