Mini Dark Chocolate Tarts with Salted Caramel Sauce

Close up of three mini chocolate tarts with salted caramel drizzle on a white plate. Get the recipe.

5 from 6 votes

Mini Dark Chocolate Tarts with Salted Caramel Sauce

These mini dark chocolate tarts are rich and delicious. The salted caramel sauce only takes 10 minutes to make, but gives them a lovely extra flavour dimension. Perfect for a party, dessert or afternoon tea.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Chilling2 hrs

Total Time30 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, International

Servings:

Calories: 160kcal

Author: Kate Hackworthy | Veggie Desserts

Ingredients

For the pastry

36 store bought mini tart cases (Or 320g/11oz package store bought shortcrust pastry)

For the chocolate cream filling

300 ml double cream (heavy cream)
300 g (1 ⅔ cups chopped or chips) dark chocolate chopped
5 tablespoon caster sugar
50 g (⅓ stick) butter cut into small cubes
¼ teaspoon vanilla

For the salted caramel sauce

125 ml (½ cup) water
200 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
175 ml (¾ cup) double (heavy) cream
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

If not using pre-made pastry cases:

Preheat oven to 200ºC/400F. Lightly grease the cups of a mini muffin tin.
Roll the dough out thinly on a lightly floured surface. Cut the pastry into discs slightly larger than the diameter of the muffin cups. Gently press each one into the muffin tin. Prick the bases with a fork a few times then leave to rest in the fridge for 10 minutes.
Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until slightly golden. Allow to cool completely.

For the chocolate cream filling

Place a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Add the cream, chocolate, sugar, butter and vanilla. Stir until it all melts together and becomes glossy and smooth.
Pour into the pastry cases and gently tap to level and remove any air bubbles.
Allow to cool slightly, then refrigerate for 2 hours.

For the salted caramel sauce

Measure out all the ingredients first. Add the water to a saucepan, then pour in the sugar (Note: don’t stir, but just allow the sugar to melt into the water - you don’t want to splash the sugar against the sides).
Bring to the boil over a medium-high heat for about 5-7 minutes until it turns a rich amber colour and the food thermometer reads 175C/350F.
Remove the pan from the heat and very carefully (the sugar water is HOT!) whisk in the cream. It will bubble up a lot. Then stir in the vanilla and salt.
Allow to cool then drizzle over the chilled chocolate tarts and sprinkle with a few flakes of sea salt.
Pour the remainder into a sterilised glass jar and allow to cool. It’s delicious on ice cream, crumble, cupcakes or even the odd sneaky teaspoon straight out of the jar.

Video

Notes

You can make your own pastry, use store bought shortcrust pastry or buy premade mini tart shells.

The nutritional information provided is approximate and is created with online calculators. Info will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Nutrition