Salted Caramel Chocolate Tartlets
Crisp, buttery pastry shells filled with toasted hazelnuts, a gooey layer of salted butter caramel and a smooth dark chocolate ganache, finished with flakes of fleur de sel. Sweet, salty, and indulgent!
Ingredients
For the chocolate seal
- 50 gr dark chocolate 60–70%
For the filling
- 60 gr hazelnuts
- 120 gr salted butter caramel homemade or from a jar
For the ganache
- 200 gr dark chocolate 60–70%
- 200 gr heavy whipping cream crème entière liquide
To glaze and finish
- 1 egg yolk loosened
- tbsp milk or cream
- flaky salt
Instructions
1. Line a tart rings
- Line a tart rings with the shortcrust pastry. With rings, there's no need to blind bake. For a single deep tin, blind bake with baking beans at 180°C for about 15 minutes.
2. Chill the cases
- Put the lined tins in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, ideally an hour, or 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. This is what stops the pastry shrinking down the sides. Bake straight from cold.
3. Blind bake the shells
- Heat the oven to 180°C (fan 160°C). Line each shell with baking paper and fill with baking beans or rice. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the edges are set. Remove the paper and beans and bake for another 8 to 10 minutes, until the bases are dry and the shells are an even deep golden.
4. Glaze the shells
- Carefully unmould the shells, set them on a baking tray and brush the outsides and rims thinly with the egg yolk mixture. Return to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes, until shiny and golden. Leave to cool completely.
5. Toast the hazelnuts
- Spread them on a tray and toast at 150–160°C for 10 to 15 minutes, until fragrant. Rub them in a clean tea towel to remove most of the skins, then chop very roughly or leave as is. Set a small handful aside for decoration.
6. Seal the shells
- Melt the chocolate for the seal and brush or spoon a thin layer inside each cooled shell. While it's still soft, press in the chopped hazelnuts. Chill for about 10 minutes until set.
7. Add the caramel
- Spoon about a tablespoon of salted butter caramel over the hazelnuts in each shell and smooth it out. If yours is too thick to spread, warm it for a few seconds. Put the tartlets in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up the surface, so the ganache doesn't mix into it.
8. Make the ganache
- Chop the chocolate finely and put it in a bowl. Bring the cream just to a simmer and pour it over the chocolate. Leave for a minute, then stir gently from the centre outwards until smooth and glossy. Let it cool to around 35–40°C: still pourable, but no longer hot enough to melt the caramel.
9. Fill and set the tartlets
- Pour the ganache over the caramel right up to the rim. Tap the tartlets lightly on the worktop to release air bubbles. Scatter over the reserved hazelnuts and a tiny pinch of fleur de sel, then chill for about 2 hours until set.
10. Serve the tartlets
- Take them out of the fridge 15 to 25 minutes before serving, so the ganache softens and the caramel turns gooey again.
Notes
- Tin depth: the quantities are for 8 cm tins about 2 cm deep.
- Make ahead: bake the shells a day ahead and keep them in an airtight tin.
- Storage: covered in the fridge, eaten within two days.