Little chocolate tarts

I recently saw a video of  Nancy Birtwhistle  making jam tarts using a traditional pan with round shapes that I had never seen before. They are commonly used to make mince pies and the aforementioned jam tarts, neither of which I’m familiar with. I thought they would make cute little flowers with a classic chocolate ganache. You could of course use a regular muffin tray, or any pie dish. This is such a classic and so simple that I sometimes forget about making it, but it tastes incredible.

Shortbread crust

145g flour (1 cup)

114g butter (1 stick or 1/2cup)

50g powdered sugar (or regular sugar)

2g salt

Cut the butter into pieces and mash everything together with your hands until it forms a dough. It will seem too dry and crumbly first, but keep going until it all comes together. Roll into appropriate thickness (keeping in mind that it will puff a little as it bakes) and cut out little flowers with a cutter. Press them down into the molds. 

Bake at 325 until golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

Ganache filling

100g chocolate (54% to 72% depending on preference)

120 cream

40 butter

Salt

2t corn syrup (optional)

Bring the cream to a simmer, add the chopped chocolate, and stir until fully melted and combined. Add the butter and mix until fully incorporated, then salt and syrup, if using. Finish mixing until shiny and smooth. 

You can pour this directly into the tart shells if you want a flat filling, or let it set in the fridge so you can pipe it.

As a finishing touch, you can sprinkle some crunchy salt flakes or fleur de sel.