You know I love Abby Dodge. So, when Abby posted her invitation to bloggers to bake together in the month of May, you know I was on board. Abby provided us with her gorgeous Chocolate Truffle Tart recipe and encouraged us to make it our own with change-ups and mix-ins.
If you think my photos look a little worse than usual, you are right! My camera is in the shop.
My first order of business was to obtain a tart pan with a removable bottom. If I had given myself more time, I could have checked more places but I ended up at a super store that starts with B’s and rhymes with Ed, Ath and Eyond. Alas, ol’ Ed, Ath and Eyond didn’t have much of a selection and I ended up with an 11-1/2” tart pan instead of the 9-1/2” Abby’s recipe calls for. Oh darn. More chocolate tart. Such a hardship.
I consulted with Abby on Twitter and we decided that increasing the quantities by 25% ought to do the trick.
My next task was to decide exactly how I was changing it up. Last week was my younger stepdaughter’s 21st birthday (21??? How did that happen so fast??), so I let her choose between chocolate with orange, lemon, peanut butter or raspberry. She chose peanut butter and who was I to argue? We love peanut butter in this house and peanut butter and chocolate are soul mates.
The process pictures were taken with my phone and final product pictures were taken with a borrowed camera
I didn’t quite figure out how I was getting the peanut butter in until I was actually baking. I started by putting some into the graham cracker crust. And since peanut butter extract doesn’t seem to exist (get on that, McCormick!), I put some almond extract into the chocolate instead of rum.
It needed way more PB though, so I considered layers. I even tried to spread some right on the crust but that definitely didn’t work. The crust started falling apart and the peanut butter made a sticky mess. I clearly needed something mixed with the PB to make it more spreadable/pourable. I raided the fridge and pantry and came up with cream cheese, heavy cream, and sugar. I beat them all together in my stand mixer along with more peanut butter and had my creamy, peanut buttery layer.
Since I increased the chocolate filling ingredients by 25%, it didn’t all quite fit into the tart pan. But it’s okay – I found another use for it, but that’s another post.
With my creamy peanut butter layer, I figured I could go easy on the topping but I wanted something at least a little more unusual than plain whipped cream. Instead, I whipped some crème fraiche with a little sugar and vanilla. Crème fraiche has a little tang to it like yogurt which I thought was a nice foil for all that sweet, rich chocolate. My husband disagreed and did not care for the tang. If you are tang-averse, you may want to go a more traditional route! I piped the topping around the edges of the tart instead of covering the whole thing, which later made my husband happy when he cut himself a piece from the middle of the tart with no topping at all.
I really enjoyed the creative process of making this tart my own. Thanks for all the inspiration, Abby!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Truffle Tart Makes one 11-1/2” tart, (plus extra chocolate filling) For the crust: For the chocolate filling: For the peanut butter layer: For the topping: To make the crust: To make the chocolate filling: To make the peanut butter layer: To make the topping:
Adapted from Abby Dodge/Fine Cooking
1 full sleeve graham crackers
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
15 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2.5 ounces (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 5 pieces
1 tablespoon almond extract
1-1/4 cup half and half
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch table salt
4 ounces (half package) cream cheese
½ cup creamy peanut butter
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons milk or cream, or more as needed
1 package crème fraiche
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Heat the oven to 375°F. Place graham crackers in a food processor and pulse to make fine crumbs. Add the butter, sugar, and peanut butter and pulse a few times to mix thoroughly. Press mixture into tart pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until a little darker in color. Allow to cool.
In a heatproof medium bowl, melt the chocolate, half and half, and butter in a microwave or over simmering water. Remove from the heat and add the almond & vanilla extracts and salt. Whisk the mixture until well blended. Set aside, whisking occasionally, until room temperature and slightly thickened, about 1 hour. (For faster cooling, refrigerate the filling until thickened to a pudding consistency, about 30 minutes, whisking and scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula every 5 minutes.)
Combine cream cheese, peanut butter and sugar and beat with an electric mixer to blend. Add milk or cream and beat again. Check consistency and add more milk if it is too thick to spread. With a rubber spatula, scrape the mixture into the crust and spread evenly. Pour the chocolate layer over the peanut butter layer and spread. Let cool completely, cover, and refrigerate until the filling is set, about 4 hours and up to 1 day.
In a medium bowl, combine the crème fraiche, sugar and vanilla. Using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, beat on low speed until smooth. Increase speed to medium high and beat until cream is thick and holds firm peaks. Spoon topping into a pastry bag with a decorating tip, or a Ziploc bag with the end snipped off and make rosettes around the edge of the tart. Cover loosely and refrigerate up to 8 hours.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Crazy, CRAZY about this peanut butter layer! and the creme fraiche topping is the perfect balance!
Thank you so much, Abby!! I loved taking part in Baking Together and I’m really looking forward to the next challenge.
Leftover chocolate filling? Wish I had that problem
I loved this recipe and its so much fun seeing what other bakers have done with it. Happy Friday!
Thank you for visiting, Yuri! I am looking forward to seeing everyone’s different versions. Have a wonderful weekend!
In the name of all that is good in the world, please send me a slice of this tart.
If I still had some, I totally would. This disappeared pretty fast in my house!
Bread and Putter? Peanut Butter? There is a poem in there somewhere but in lieu of that…I’ll take your poetic license with this tart. Wait, with this MONSTER tart. Wanna trade a piece…now that should be our next challenge!
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