If there is one ingredient you’d love to bake with, what would it be? I have several but I think if given a choice, it would be chocolate and cocoa. In my books, I don’t think anything can beat that warm sweet scent in the kitchen that I find so addictively comforting. Granted, I invariably end up making a mess every time I work with cocoa or chocolate, my white kitchen table ends up looking like a war zone with dark brown splattered streaks and spots all over the place. I mentally prepare myself going in armed with the knowledge that I will end up making a huge mess. In the end it never really matters. Because of that final moment, when nothing else matters and my eyes eagerly wait for that hot dark brown dessert to pop out of the oven. I’ll admit I’ve burned my mouth a few times when I’ve been impatient enough to try and taste it hot. This is not recommended one bit, speaking from personal experience!
Last weekend, I spent my time baking. I missed using my tart pan, I haven’t used it in a long time and I felt it beckon me from the corner where it has stayed hidden for the past few months. A few minutes later, I had the pan in one hand and the other was busy shuffling through the pantry shelf, which is what we also refer to as my “Museum Collection and Assortment of Flours” (it’s a whole shelf with several types of flours) which for some reason lacked any regular all-purpose flour. Thankfully, I still had a bit of buckwheat flour left to make my crust. I love buckwheat a lot for its characteristic nutty taste and gorgeous gray color. I made a very simple crust, buckwheat and ground almond meal with a little bit of butter to hold everything together. The resultant pastry reminded me of a graham cracker crust with a buttery and delicious nutty flavor.
When it comes to preparing tarts and pies, I love my faithful trustworthy porcelain pie beads. But if you don’t own any and can’t find a store that sells them near you, use dried beans. I’ve had my beads for a few years now and they making blind baking a cinch. Adding the parchment sheet on top of the pastry surface helps to easily lift the beads off as soon as the tart comes out of the oven and there’s a less chance of getting burned!
Now for the fun part, the chocolate filling! Since it is autumn, I snuck in a little of bit cinnamon, not too much, just a little dab for a little bit of added warmth to the chocolate flavors. When this tart came out, it was every bit delicious, a thin fine crust outside with a moist gooey chocolatey inside. That against the buckwheat and almond crust made it simply enjoyable. And yes, I did my burn my mouth again while trying to taste this way too soon!
chocolate buckwheat almond tart
yields: 6-8 servings
buckwheat almond tart crust
ingredients
yields: enough to cover one 9 inch ruffled tart pan
1 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup ground almond meal
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1. Preheat the oven to 325F. Line the bottom of a 9 inch ruffled tart pan with parchment paper and spray the sides lightly with a neutral oil.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients to mix uniformly. Add the melted butter and mix with your hands to form a dough. If the mixture is too sticky allow it too cool a little, this will help it firm. Transfer the dough to the pan and with your fingers/ or using the bottom flat surface of a measuring cup press the dough up the bottom and sides of the pan to form a layer of even thickness. Cover the crust with clingfilm and refrigerate for 30 mins.
3. Remove the cling film and prick the surface of the crust a few times with the prongs of a fork. Cover the top surface of the pastry with parchment paper and place some pie beads or dried beans. This will prevent uneven rising during the baking process. Bake the pastry for 20 minutes in the center rack of the oven (this is also called blind baking). The edges will be slightly golden brown at this point. Carefully remove the pie beads along with the parchment sheet paper on the top surface.
4. Pour the warm chocolate tart filling (recipe below) into the tart shell, even the surface with a flat offset spatula or a flat butter knife and bake the tart for another 15-20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean from the center of the tart filling. Transfer the tart from the oven and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes in the pan on a wire rack before removing and transferring it to a clean serving plate. The tart will have a delicate crust on top but a moist gooey texture inside. Slice the tart with a sharp serrated bread knife and serve warm or cold.
chocolate tart filling
yields: enough for filling for one 9 inch tart
ingredients
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1 tablespoon madagascar bourbon vanilla extract
1. Melt the chocolate, cream, and butter together in a thick bottomed saucepan over a boiling water bath. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Mix constantly till smooth to get a shiny silky smooth sauce. Keep warm.
2. In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla at high speed for 5 minutes until you get a pale yellow lemony color and a ribbon can be formed with the eggs, the eggs will have tripled in volume.
3. Fold the chocolate mix into the whisked eggs carefully with a circular motion. There will be some deflation but avoid losing too much of the trapped air.
4. Please refer to step 4 above, listed under the tart crust instructions to finish off the tart.
4. Please refer to step 4 above, listed under the tart crust instructions to finish off the tart.
62 Responses
This looks gorgeous. Chocolate and cocoa are some of my most favourite ingredients too – you're right, they are just so comforting. Seriously gorgeous looking.
This looks rich and delicious. Thank you.
A beautiful tart! It looks absolutely divine. I really like the fact that you've used buckwheat in the pastry. A flavorful addition.
Great clicks!
Cheers,
Rosa
A decadent chocolate tart! Love your gluten free crust.
This is simply dreamy! Chocolate is pretty much my favorite thing on earth – and there's hardly anything better than stirring a big bowl of melted chocolate together. Eggs are my other favorite thing – they're magical. : )
Needless to say, I love this tart…that brownie like crust on top and gooey filling must be sensational. I like the pairing with the buckwheat, almond crust. There's nothing not to like!
The chocolate mess is always worth it when you pull something as gorgeous as this out of the oven!
Nothing is as much a joy to the senses as chocolate is – I totally understand and empathize with you on burning your mouth not being able to wait on delicacies such as these to cool down. I probably would have done the exact same thing 🙂
This tart looks delectable!
The tart looks gorgeous and the flavors sound amazing. I have never tried buckwheat in baking and I am so inspired to do that now. Thanks for sharing.
yum! looks so beautiful!
It has to be chocolate for me too! This is one terrific tart.
This looks like a delcious and decadent chocolate treat. As always love your presentation and photos.
Love the use of buckwheat in this tart. It's simply gorgeous to look at and sure is a palette pleaser too.
Talking of tarts, I haven't even used mine and its been lying in my cupboard for half a year now 🙁 Gotta get down to making a tart soon and I totally agree with you on Chocolate or cocoa, its one of my fav baking ingredients too 🙂 Hope u got to enjoy the tart once it cooled down…
I can never decide what my favourite ingredients are to bake with but chocolate is right up there near the top. I'm intrigued with the buckwheat flour I have never baked with it and it is not available in my local supermarkets but for this fantastic looking tart it may well be worth a drive to find some 🙂
This looks just divine! Love the addition of the buckwheat flour.
I have to confess that I haven't worked much with buckwheat flour and honestly I am so used to my mum's tart base recipe that I never thought of trying another one. Time that I change that. Thanks for sharing such a glorious chocolate tart recipe which is even healthy!
buckwheat on a tart sounds very interesting although have never used it before. chocolate def swoons me every single time 🙂
Definitely chocolate for me when it comes to baking – you can do so much with it. Although it's hard to turn down fruit, too! Anyway, wonderful looking tart. Great recipe – thanks.
I love what you do with alternative flours, Nik! This looks so decadent and fudgy!
looks so good – chocolate is definitely the way to go. I'm still a bit shy of baking – so for now I'll just look at your gorgeous pics. And those beads are so cute!
I love chocolate and look at that crusty top?!!!! Divine 😀
Ahhh you are making me tempted to have a slice (and won't end with just one slice!). I should invest on those pie beads – they are pretty! I agree, chocolate can't beat anything (but I have the same love for matcha and red bean paste in Japanese sweets)!
I could have the whole tart just for myself…It is so moist and tempting!
yum…that crusty top got me !
I couldn't agree more with you Nick, if I would have to choose my favorite ingredients for baking it would be as well chocolate and cocoa.
Love this tarte, it looks as it would melt in your mouth- so delicious!
This looks delicious, and your pics are gorgeous, like always!
Happy weekend, Nik! x
Hey Nik, thanks for the lovely comment you left on my blog. I'm glad to have found yours as a result! I love the use of buckwheat and almond together—a combination I've never tried before. I love using both flours independently (you're so right about the gorgeous nuttiness), so I imagine it would be a lovely marriage of flavours.
I agree about chocolate – it's never far away in my kitchen. I love my pie beads. They make baking so much easier.
Thanks Sarah, I love, love chocolate!
Thank you so much, Dena!
Thanks Angie!
I love eggs too! I just baked some eggs last night for dinner.
Aww, thanks Joanne!
I need to learn to be more patient, hot chocolate is just too unforgiving sometimes.
Thanks so much, you should try and get your hands on buckwheat, I think you will like it.
Thanks, Trisha.
Thanks, Kulsum.
Thank you Beth for your kind comments.
Thanks Asha. Buckwheat is definitely a fun flour to work with.
I did get to eat a little bit of the tart, I had taken it to a dinner party that night.
Thank you Karen, I think you might be able to find it online. The flavor is really nutty which is why I love it.
Thank you so much, Marcie.
Oh, I know what you mean, old trusted and tested recipes are really the best to work with!
Yay, I am glad you like it too!
I love fruit too, thanks John!
Thanks Angela, it was definitely tasty.
You should get into it Archana, it is a lot of fun and a good stress buster.
Thank you, Kiran!
The beads were one of the best investments I made, since I hate wasting beans for this and generally end up tossing the beans out. I love your matcha recipes.
Thank you, Denise!
Thank you, Simi!
I am glad we share the same love for all things cocoa!
You are so kind Consuelo, thank you so much!
It is great to hear from Irina. The taste is definitely wonderful.
That is so true Suzanne, they are a life and pie saver!
Came upon your blog via Tastespotting (lured by the idea of an almond/buckwheat crust and all that lovely chocolate!), and I very much like what I see. This is the first of what I know will be a many, many visits.
Now, to haul out my tart pan and have at it!
Thanks for stopping by Pamela! I am so happy you like my work and I look forward to hearing more from you 🙂
Thank you Rosa, I am so glad you like it.
Use of a buckwheat is a great idea, It looks delicious, I really want to try it.Now i m going to make this , thanks for posting it.
Thanks, I am glad you like it!
Never used buckwheat flour before, sounds interesting and that tart WOW!! that's on my to do list definetly! Thanks!
Sounds amazing. I'm totally making this once my 7 day "no baked goods" challenge is up!