Individual Chocolate Caramel Tarts

Dreamy creamy caramel is hidden under a rich chocolate glaze in these delectable chocolate caramel tarts. Each individually sized tart shell is made from sweet and crunchy pastry and these tarts can be topped with a little sea salt or some fun sprinkles. Either way, they are little bites of bliss.

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These chocolate caramel tarts are a bit of a treat to say the least. Inside of each sweet, crunchy pastry shell is a tempting layer of buttery caramel hiding under a sumptuous chocolate glaze that balances the deep, decadent caramel perfectly. Happy sighs are guaranteed when these appear on the table.

My favourite way to top these mini pastries is with a few sea salt flakes, turning them into salted chocolate caramel tarts. However, they are also delicious when topped with exciting sprinkles too.

Why this recipe works

The combination of crisp and golden pastry, soft caramel and rich chocolate ganache is hard to resist.

These mini chocolate and caramel tarts are made from scratch, so you can expect something wonderful from each component. But it’s hard to identify the real star of the show here. All three components will individually rock your socks off:

• The pastry – it’s the lightest, sweetest, crunchiest and most buttery pastry you could ever wish for. The sweet pastry has been my go-to recipe for dessert pastry for well over a decade
• The caramel layer – deeply rich, creamy and buttery. It already sounds like the perfect filling. However, a little salt and vanilla combine with it to produce an altogether more wickedly sophisticated affair. Expect thick, smooth caramel that will slowly ooze out of the pastry shell when cut or bitten into. It’s not too thick and not too thin, just gloriously gooey
• The chocolate glaze – a blend of milk and dark chocolate go into the mix to ensure that the rich chocolate ganache is neither too sweet nor too bitter against the other flavours. It has an enticing shine and a firm but biteable set – no chocolate shower when you sink your teeth into it – bonus!

I won’t lie, these mini tarts do take a little time to prepare but since they are the perfect 3-way marriage, I’m willing to forgive them for the time involved.

If you’re short on time you could always use bought pastry shells and caramel spread.

Ingredients

The pastry is made with ‘00’ flour. Yes, that is pasta flour (available in most supermarkets). This powder-fine flour is probably the reason this pastry is better than average. I have tried this pastry recipe with plain flour and the results are not quite so good, but you can substitute it if necessary.

Icing sugar takes the place of caster sugar in the pastry. Please do not swap this out as it is vital to ensure that the pastry is as short as can be.

Use real block butter in this recipe for the fullest of flavour in both the shortcrust pastry and the creamy caramel. Baking margarine is not a suitable substitute.

Use quality chocolate for the ganache. It will melt well and produce a smooth, shiny glaze. Use respected brands such as Green & Black, Lindt, or Callebaut. I’ve also had good results baking with Waitrose own brand Belgian chocolate. Avoid the likes of Dairy Milk and Galaxy. Whilst these are lovely to munch on, they are not suitable for baking with as the cocoa butter content is too low.

I know it’s annoying when a recipe calls for just the yolk of an egg – sorry. However, you could use the spare egg white to make a few coconut macaroons or an Amaretto sour.

How to make mini caramel tarts

Full instructions and measurements are given in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

There are three separate stages to making these mini caramel tarts. Here are the brief instructions, but I urge you to read this detailed post and the recipe card for full details and tips. You’ll bake the best tarts if you do.

Make the pastry

1. Sieve the flour, salt and icing sugar into a bowl
2. Rub the butter into the flour and salt until the mixture resembles sand/ breadcrumbs
3. Use a blunt knife to stir in the yolk
4. Use your hands to bring the dough together
5. Knead briefly, wrap in clingfilm and chill for 45-60 minutes
6. Roll out the pastry to around 2mm thick and use a straight or fluted round cutter to cut out circles big enough to line your baking tins. Re-roll once if necessary
7. Line the tart tins with the pastry rounds, prick the bases with a fork then cover with clingfilm and put back in the fridge to chill for an hour
8. Just before baking line each tart case with a circle of baking parchment to cover the base and sides (try drawing around the pastry cutter used earlier) and fill with uncooked rice
9. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove the rice and parchment and bake for a further 5 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool in the tins

Make the caramel

1. Spread the sugar out in a large, heavy-based saucepan in an even layer and cook over a low-medium heat to allow the sugar to gradually melt (swirl the pan a couple of times to ensure the caramel cooks evenly, but do not stir it)
2. Once the sugar has melted continue to let it cook until it reaches a mid-dark amber colour
3. Add the butter and pour in the cream then mix (it may bubble splutter and seize)
4. Cook, stirring constantly, for a further 2 minutes until smooth
5. Take off the heat and stir in the salt and vanilla extract
6. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully pour the caramel into the pastry cases then leave for several hours for the caramel filling to cool and firm up

Make the chocolate ganache

1. Melt the chocolate with the butter in a Bain-Marie or in the microwave
2. Once melted stir until smooth, then add the double cream and mix or whisk for 1-2 minutes until shiny and glossy
3. Top one tart with a generous teaspoon of the chocolate glaze and spread out to completely cover the caramel
4. Add a pinch of sea salt or some sprinkles to the top and repeat with the rest of the tarts
5. Leave to set for 45 minutes

Expert Tips

Because there are three distinct stages to making these caramel chocolate tarts, there are a lot of tips to give. For this reason, I’ve split them into 3 sections so they are easy to find:

Pastry tips

• This pastry is easy to make but, because it contains a high proportion of butter, it needs a little extra attention. If it is not kept cold it will be too sticky to roll out. Therefore it is essential to remember the following points:
  • chilled butter must be used to make it
  • and, once made, the pastry must be chilled well before rolling out
  • once the pastry is in the tart cases it must be chilled again before baking
  • any pastry that needs to be re-rolled may need to be chilled again before doing so
• When it comes to blind baking the sweet pastry cases, cut circles of baking parchment big enough to cover the base and sides of each case. Press one into each case and fill to the top with uncooked rice
• Baking beans are too heavy for this pastry and will leave indentations. Using rice (e.g. long grain or basmati) works well though
• Bake for 10 minutes, then remove the rice and parchment and bake for 5 more minutes. By this time the pastry shells should be golden
• This is the only time the tarts will be in the oven, so ensure they are fully cooked before removing them
• If pastry making is not something you enjoy feel free to use either store-bought sweet pastry shells or use readymade shortcrust pastry (sweet if available)

Tips for making caramel

If you’ve never done so before, making caramel can be daunting. I do recall my bitter (quite literally) disappointment when my first attempt at caramel making went horribly wrong. Looking back, I was simply naive and ill-prepared. Once I’d actually taken the time to read some proper instructions and followed them carefully, then I started to produce some respectable caramel.

Along my rocky road to smooth caramel heaven, I’ve picked up tips here and there. I’ve listed them here to get any newbies amongst us going (though I won’t judge anybody who chooses to use store-bought caramel spread instead of making their own caramel filling from scratch).

• Use the best (heavy based) pan that you have and avoid using any pan that is non-stick as the high heat of the caramel can damage it
• Use a pan that is large enough. I usually allow my caramel to come no further than ⅓ of the way up the side of the pan.
• Do use white refined sugar. Golden or brown sugars make grainy caramel a more likely outcome. Trust me, I have tried several times to use golden caster sugar (thinking I was being smart) and ended up with a pan of substandard grainy gloop
• Try to spread the sugar evenly across the pan since this allows the caramel to cook more evenly.
• Do not stir. As the sugar melts you can gently swirl the pan a couple of times to redistribute the mixture and aid the even cooking. But stirring could render the caramel grainy
• Don’t rush it. Allow the sugar to melt over a low-medium heat. Allow around 15-20 minutes to make a batch of caramel
• When you add the butter and cream be very carefully as the liquid may bubble up and splatter a little bit and it’s totally normal for the caramel to clump together at this stage. Just keep cooking and stirring until it’s smooth again
• Remember that caramel is extremely hot – take care and do not be tempted to taste as you cook (oo-oo-ouch)
• And on this note, I do not recommend letting children make caramel
• And finally, a confession. Even using the same pan, the same ring on the stovetop and the same brand of sugar, sometimes caramel just goes wrong. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve employed exactly the same methods and had my sugar crystalise part way through the melting period. Sadly, theres no salvage option to this. Nor is there a good explanation for it to have gone wrong if the caramel making rules are adhered to. It’s best to just clean the pan and start again

And there we have it: my foolproof list of tips that I tend to adhere to 95% of the time. If you want to read more on caramel making, head over to David Lebovitz. You’ll find plenty more tips along with his in-depth insights into the mechanics of caramel making.

Chocolate ganache tips

Thankfully, making the chocolate glaze for these tarts is a much simpler process than making the pastry and caramel. Regardless, here are a few pointers to help you get a perfect chocolate ganache to top these mini caramel tarts with:

• Using a 50:50 blend of milk and dark chocolate gives the perfect level of intense chocolate flavour coupled with sweetness for this recipe
• But you can use all dark chocolate for a more intense – some would say grown-up – flavour
• Similarly, if you have a very sweet tooth, you could opt of all milk chocolate
• Avoid using white chocolate though, as when combinaed with the sweet pastry and caramel the overall result is too sweet
• If using a microwave to melt the chocolate, do so carefully. It’s best to use a medium heat and cook in 30 second bursts, stirring between each one. This ensures the chocolate does not burn. If it does burn it will become grainy and unuseable
• If, once the cream has been added your ganache looks grainy, beat it rapidly until smooth and shiny
• Should the ganache cool down too quickly and become hard to spread, simply reheat in the microwave (on a very gentle heat) in 10 second bursts, stirring between each one, until it is spreadable again

Frequently asked questions

Variations and ideas for decorations

• Increase the amount of salt added to the caramel to 1 teaspoon to make chocolate salted caramel tarts. (Perhaps leave the sea salt garnish off the top and opt for sprinkles instead though)
• Alternatively, flavour the caramel – try adding 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• Use chocolate pastry instead to make double chocolate caramel tarts
• Get creative with the toppings – hunt around for interesting sprinkles
• Or opt for grated chocolate (white provides a nice contrast to the dark chocolate ganache
• Garnish with gold leave for a decadent finish
• Turn them into seasonal tarts by topping with mini eggs at Easter or piping white chocolate snowflakes on the top for Christmas

More caramel desserts to try

Have you made these mini caramel tarts? How did you get along – feel free to leave a rating and/or below to let me know.

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