Chocolate Truffle Tart

How did the weekend treat y'all? I hope it was great! We had an awesome time. Busy, busy, busy....

Friday night, we went to Muss and Turners and then South City Kitchen with our friends, Jody and Tisha. The wine bar at M & Ts is really neat.

I stuck with a glass of old faithful Malbec. Jeffro got a coffee/chocolate flavored stout.

The other side of this place is an awesome, upscale deli.  They have tons of sides, desserts, and even a few varieties of homemade pickles. It was packed for dinner.

After a drink, we moved next door to South City Kitchen. We started off our meal with some mussels, of course! These had a wine wine, butter, and lemon broth, with okra and tomatoes. Delish!

Jeff got the mushroom meatloaf with tomato gravy (and a side of old bay fries)...

I think my meal really stole the show though. The vegetable plate!

Normally, I am not one to order a vegetarian option, but I couldn't pass this up! Succotash, fried okra, creamy baked mac n' cheese, green beans and roast/smoked aparagus. Everything was amazing. I think Jeff ate half of my mac....it was so rich!

We had a blast catching up with our buddies...

And the blue cheese-stuffed olives in our martinis were the icing on the cake :)

Good times!

Saturday, I was up bright and early to start prepping for our dinner party. Cooking always takes longer than I expect it to, and this was no exception. We had a lot going on too. Check out my plate...

BBQ ribs with whisky sauce, Auntie's seven layer salad, heirloom tomato and peach salad (thanks Meg!), pasta salad, and baked beans. Not pictured: Buffalo chicken sliders, homemade pickles, and chocolate truffle tart. Whew. Can you tell that I like to feed my guests?

It was my first attempt at ribs. I know. We never ate ribs growing up, or much BBQ at all actually. I did a bunch of research, and in the end, they came out pretty good. Jeff even said that they were the best ribs he's ever had. That's saying a lot :)

I'll share that recipe, and a few others with you this week. But first, I wanted to share this rich, decadent dessert. I got it through one of my Mom's co-workers. She told me it was the best dessert she's tasted. I'm not one for chocolate, but everyone loved it. It can be made up to 3 days in advance too. Bonus!

The crust calls for 45 Oreo cookies. Meaning that you must twist and separate each cookie and then scrape off the cream. Let me mention that the cream on the reduced fat brand doesn't stick to one side either. It's on both when you twist the cookies. Sweet.

Next, mix in your melted butter and stir to combine. Press this mixture into your tart pan and bake it off for about 10 minutes.

Now it's time for the filling. Over a double broiler, I melted the butter and chocolate. It has to be <60% cacao, bittersweet chocolate. 2 bars of it.

In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, cream, eggs, and vanilla. Remove the melted chocolate from the heat and SLOWLY combine the two. You must do this slowly so that the eggs don't scramble. Pour the mixture into your cooled tart shell.

Bake this for another 20-22 minutes, then let it cool for a few hours before you refrigerate it.

Before I served it, I topped the tart with some Himalayan pink salt. So far, the reviews have been great! Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TART

CRUST:

25        Oreo cookies

4          tablespoons butter

9          inch tart pan or spring form pan

Preheat oven to 350 F

Crush cookies in food processor or by hand, mix in butter and then press into bottom of pan an 1 inch up sides. Bake crust for 10 minutes and cool for 15 minutes on rack

FILLING:

¼ cup  granulated sugar

1/3 cup heavy cream

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

½ pound chocolate  (not more than 60% cocoa content)

6 tablespoons butter

Melt butter and chocolate (broken into pieces) in a double boiler type pan over low heat.  When melted together take off heat and let cool approx. 5 minutes. Whisk together sugar, heavy cream, salt, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.  Whisk in chocolate and butter mixture until smooth.

Pour filling into prepared crust and gently drop on countertop to remove any air bubbles. Bake at 350 F for 20-22 minutes until the filling has setup.

Cool on rack at room temp for at least 2 hours.  Cover the tart loosely (to avoid condensation) and place in refrigerator.  Tart can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 days. Dust with cocoa powder and decorate with your choice of toppings (whipped cream, chocolate pieces, etc.)