Pretty in Pink Chocolate Cream Tarts with Raspberry Mousse

My two recent blog love finds are by French food stylists. I picture Bea and Helen sipping cafe au lait at a chic open-air bistro plinking away at their keyboards formulating the latest fashionable recipe. Their blogs are artistic, elegant, and full of the some of the most dazzling photography that I’ve seen. Brimming with finesse and style, these talented ladies describe the most common dish with finesse and style. Impressive is quite the understatement. Link and love:

It is from these ladies that this week’s first post is inspired; tarts, of course! In September, Bake at 350‘s Flavor of the Month group is baking  a “Tribute to John Hughes.” With this in mind, I bring you Pretty in Pink Chocolate Cream Tarts with Raspberry Mousse. The sweet pâte sucrée is the perfect vessel for a filling of smooth, rich chocolate pastry cream cloaked with light, airy and strikingly pink raspberry mousse. Enjoy!

Pâte sucrée:
200 g. (1 1/2c.) flour
pinch salt
70 g. (1/3c.) cold butter, cut into small cubes
80 g. (1/2c.) extrafine sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 t. almond extract
1-3 T. water

1. In a large bowl, sift flour with salt and sugar.
2. Incorporate the butter into dry ingredients using fingertips or a pastry blender to rub butter into the flour until it resembles bread crumbs.
3. Form a hole in the center of the mixture and pour in the egg, vanilla, and some of the water (less is best). Using a wooden spoon, stir rapidly to blend dough. The objective is merely to get it to form a ball. Do NOT overwork dough. If still dry, add more water. Sticky? A bit of flour should do the trick.
4. Form dough into a disk, cover, and refrigerate 20 minutes.
5. Roll dough on a floured surface to ¼” thickness and place in tart pan(s). Roll the rolling pin along the top of the pan to cut edges evenly. Press dough with floured fingertips against sides of pan and dock with fork (Or use parchment and pie weights [or beans]).
6. Bake dough 15 minutes at 375F, rotate pans and bake an additional 10-15 min. until golden brown.

Chocolate Crème Pâtissière
2c. + 2T. milk
2T. fresh coffee, cooled
4 yolks
½ t. vanilla
½ c. sugar
¼ t. Salt
2T. cocoa powder
3 oz. dark chocolate
2T. cornstarch
1T. butter

1. Bring milk to a boil, whisking toward the end.
2. Beat yolks with sugar, coffee, and salt. Add cocoa and cornstarch.
3. At boiling, remove milk from heat and slowly stream it into the yolk mixture, stirring constantly at top speed to avoid scrambling eggs (if this happens, strain the pastry cream later).
4. Pour the mixture into the saucepan and return to low heat. Whisk constantly until cream thickens (1-2 minutes) to a loose pudding consistency. It will thicken as it cools. Stir in butter, vanilla, and chocolate. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cream and cool.

Raspberry Mousse
½ c. raspberry jam
2t. gelatin
½ c. water, divided
2T. sugar
1 c. heavy cream, chilled

1. Sprinkle gelatin over ¼ c. water. Set aside.
2. In a small saucepan, heat jam, sugar, and remaining water to a simmer.
3. Add gelatin to heated mixture and stir to dissolve. Cover and chill until thickened to jam consistency.
4. Whip the cream to stiff peaks and fold in the jam
mixture. Chill to thicken more and place in a pastry bag with decorative tip.

Assembly:
Spoon pastry cream nearly to the top of the tart shells. Pipe raspberry mousse on top and adorn with fresh mint, berries, or chocolate drizzle.