Aurélien Cohen’s chocolate tart
Pastry Chef Aurélien Cohen is one of the rising stars of French patisserie.
His career path is sure to inspire any amateur pastry chef. After completing a Master’s degree in marketing and spending five years at university, he decided to devote himself entirely to his passion and obtained his CAP qualification in just one year. He then worked his way up the ranks at catering companies and tea rooms. Today, he runs his own patisserie in Asnières, where he also leads masterclasses. His signature style is all about textures.
His first book, *Architexture de la Pâtisserie*, brings together his signature recipes, focusing precisely on the structure and combination of textures in each dessert.
For the Salon du Chocolat et de la Pâtisserie and for all you Choco’Lovers, he has agreed to share the secrets behind his chocolate tart with us.
On the menu: a deliciously crisp almond sweet pastry, brushed with egg yolk for a golden finish, and a smooth, melt-in-the-mouth ganache combining dark and milk chocolate, delicately enhanced with a touch of acacia honey. Simple in appearance, but truly irresistible.
So, what are you waiting for? Put on your aprons and get baking!
For one 4-serving tart
Sweet pastry
45 g icing sugar
15 g ground almonds
125 g T55 flour
1 g salt
55 g unsalted butter
28 g whole egg
Egg wash
20 g egg yolks
5 g single cream
Chocolate ganache
151 g single cream
21 g acacia honey
70 g Guanaja chocolate or dark chocolate (70% cocoa)
70 g Jivara milk chocolate or milk chocolate (approx. 41% cocoa)
37 g unsalted butter
Sweet almond pastry
This is the foundation of it all: a thin, even and well-baked pastry that provides a crisp texture to contrast with the sweetness of the ganache.
- Using the paddle attachment on your mixer, rub together the butter, icing sugar, ground almonds and salt until crumbly. Add the egg and mix again.
- Add the flour and mix just enough to form a smooth dough.
- Shape the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and leave to rest for 2 hours in the fridge. We recommend not skipping this step: it’s what makes the pastry easy to work with.
- Roll out the pastry to a thickness of 2.5 mm on a lightly floured work surface. Cut out a disc 20 cm in diameter (for a 16 cm tart tin).
- Line the buttered tart tin with the pastry and leave to rest for 1 hour in the freezer before baking. Chilling the pastry prevents it from shrinking in the oven.
- For the egg wash, mix the egg yolk with the cream. Set aside in the fridge.
- Blind-bake the tart for 15 minutes at 170 °C. Remove the ring, then brush the tart inside and out with the glaze. Return to the oven until it is nicely browned (about 10 minutes). Set aside.
The chef’s tip: the glaze on the inside of the tart creates a thin barrier that prevents the ganache from softening the pastry. Your base will stay crisp for much longer.
The chocolate ganache
Now for the centrepiece of the tart. The secret to a smooth, glossy ganache can be summed up in one word: emulsion.
- Melt half the chocolate in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
- In a saucepan, bring the cream and honey to a gentle simmer.
- Pour the hot cream in three stages over the melted chocolate, stirring gently with a spatula between each addition to create the emulsion. Add the butter in small pieces and mix until it has melted completely.
- Finish the emulsion using a hand blender, taking care not to incorporate any air. To do this, we recommend working in a tall, narrow bowl, keeping the blender head fully submerged. Transfer the ganache to a piping bag.
The finishing touches
We’re almost there – just a little more patience!
- Pipe the still-warm ganache into the baked tart base until it’s full to the top.
- Chill in the fridge until the ganache sets, about 2 hours.
- Just before serving, grate a little chocolate over the top.
- All that’s left to do is cut a nice slice and tuck in!
We’d like to extend our warmest thanks to Aurélien Cohen for sharing this recipe with us.
We hope you all enjoy it!