CHOCOLATE FRANGIPANE TART
CHOCOLATE FRANGIPANE TART
#SIAintheKitchen
Every month I take on the task of baking a cake for those who are celebrating birthdays that month in my office. I usually take on flavour requests and try to mix it up a bit, resulting in a fun and personalized cake for the birthday celebrant. This past month was both mine and my coworker, Steve’s, birthday. I decided to make a Thai iced tea cake with condensed milk frosting for myself and bake Steve a separate cake. Steve, formerly from the UK, asked for a Bakewell tart. What the hell was that? Whatever it was, I accepted the challenge.
A quick Google search lead me to discover that a Bakewell tart consists of frangipane and sometimes cherries or raspberries, baked into a tart. Intrigued, I set to make my own version of it based on a recipe that I had seen. I decided to make a chocolate frangipane tart with whiskey-spiked mascarpone and fresh berries. The results were entirely sinful.
What I liked about this recipe was that it was relatively simple and modern. No use for a traditional crust - just the ooey gooey frangipane filling with a touch of chocolate. The texture was similar to that of a brownie - chewy and incredibly moist. Paired alongside with the mascarpone cream and fresh berries, it made for a well-balanced dessert that wasn't too sweet or rich. It was a big hit amongst my office mates and Steve was utterly impressed. Yay! Will definitely be making this one again.
CHOCOLATE FRANGIPANE TART - makes 1 8” tart (adapted from Dish)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tbsp corn syrup
1 tsp madagascar bourbon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup ground almond flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup golden brown sugar
2 tsp dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 (226g) container mascarpone cheese
1 tbsp rye whiskey
1 (236ml) container whipping cream
1/2 pint blueberries
1/2 pint strawberries, sliced
1 oz semisweet chocolate
Preheat the oven to 325F and line an 8” springform cake pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a small pot, bring 2” of water to a low boil. In a small heatproof bowl, place the bowl on top of the pot of boiling water, ensuring that the bowl does not touch any water. In this bowl, add the butter, chocolate, corn syrup and vanilla extract. Stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool down for atleast 10 minutes.
Add the eggs, one by one, to the chocolate mixture and mix until you get a nice glossy batter.
In a large separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients until well-combined. Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for 25 minutes or until a few damp crumbs come out. Let cool and transfer to a cake stand.
In a small bowl, whip the whipped cream, mascarpone cheese and rye whisky. Spoon onto the cake.
Assemble the berries on top of the marscarpone whipped cream. Finish with chocolate shavings.