No pastry required, just the lovely moist filling from a traditional tart topped with rich vanilla mascarpone and juicy red strawberries – the perfect Christmas day dessert.
Serves: 6–8
INGREDIENTS
110 grams butter
100 grams dark chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 x #7 eggs (large)
120 grams ground almonds
¼ cup caster sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ teaspoon each ground cardamom and cloves
2 tablespoons cocoa
To serve
100 grams mascarpone
½ cup cream
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
1-2 punnets strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 tablespoons chopped pistachios
METHOD
Grease a 20cm loose based tart tin. Line the base with baking paper and place whole tin on a baking tray.
Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake.
Cake: Put the butter, chocolate, golden syrup and vanilla in a large heatproof bowl and set over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until melted. Don’t let the base of the saucepan touch the water.
Take off the heat and cool for 10 minutes. Whisk in the eggs to make a thick, glossy batter. Combine the almonds, both sugars and spices and the cocoa, ensuring there are no lumps. Add to the chocolate mixture and stir to combine.
Pour into the greased tin and smooth the top. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the tart comes out with a few damp crumbs attached. Cool, then remove from the tin.
To serve: Whisk the mascarpone, cream and vanilla paste together until thick. Don’t over beat or the mascarpone will split.
Spread the cream over the tart and top with the sliced strawberries. Sprinkle with the pistachios, a dusting of icing sugar and edible flowers if using.
The tart can be made two days ahead. Keep in an airtight container and top with the mascarpone and berries on the day of serving. You can also use raspberries and blueberries of a combination of all three fruits.
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latest issue:
126
We start by sharing what’s on the dish team’s radar, what we’re watching, listening to and reading. Harry Butterfield puts a twist on his Nonna’s agnolotti, Malissa Fedele reminds us of the importance of fibre, and Phoebe Holden fulfils a long-held dream, sitting down with Yotam Ottolenghi. Autumn is an abundant time, we make the most with pumpkin, kūmara, cabbage, cauliflower, feijoas, apples and pears. We’re dishing up dinners for two, including a Chicken Dumpling Lasagne, alongside easy weeknight meals. We honour our mums, revisit timeless classics, and add a little baking challenge. This issue, we encourage you to slow down, to enjoy writing your shopping list, and spending time in the kitchen. Because even when life feels relentless, there’s always space to share something delicious.