Chocolate Orange Tarts with Fresh Orange Cream

This post is sponsored by Tenderflake.

This Valentine's Day, I'm going to sprawl on the couch, nibbling a few of these Chocolate Orange Tarts while watching an Audrey Hepburn romantic comedy. Maybe Sabrina, or Paris When It Sizzles. I love both of those films!

This year I wanted to make a Valentine's Day treat that was indulgent, but not romantic-looking. If you've read my previous Valentine's Day posts, you'll know that I'm not really into this particular holiday. I'm starting to think it has something to do with my dislike for the colour red. It's just such an aggressive colour...

I found my perfect single-lady dessert in these Chocolate Orange Tarts. They are cute, fun to eat, and they taste like a chocolate truffle that's been hidden inside of pie crust. Seriously, that ganache just melts in your mouth.

This recipe is actually based on a wedding cake that my mom made for my Aunt several years ago. It was a humid summer day, and the ganache refused to set in between the layers of cake. I'll never forget how the layers of cake kept sliding around - my poor mother was really frustrated! It did eventually set, once we cranked up the air conditioning, and it was a really delicious cake.

I didn't want to use buttercream icing on these tarts because I thought it would be too heavy. Instead, I flavoured whipped cream with freshly squeezed orange juice and icing sugar. My mom has a much steadier hand than I do, so she piped the cream on with a star tip for me. Once the cream sets, it really holds its shape (which surprised me!).

I decided to top my tarts with candied orange peel, mostly because I thought it would look pretty. It does taste really good with the sweet chocolate and slightly salty pastry. If candied peel is not your thing, you could easily top this with chocolate shavings or just the orange cream.

I'm not including the recipe for the candied peel today, because I don't think I've quite nailed it yet. Mine came out a bit burnt - I just used the best pieces for the photos.

Is it just me, or do these tarts look like mini camp fires? I might actually make them again with just a plain chocolate ganache filling and a toasted marshmallow topping. Oh my gosh, that actually sounds really good, I'm writing that down for later!

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Chocolate Orange Tarts with Fresh Orange Cream

Recipe By: Shareba Abdul

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Servings: 18 tarts

Prep Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

These cute mini tarts are filled with a chocolate orange ganache, and are topped with fresh orange-flavoured whipped cream and candied peel.

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Ingredients

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• ▢ 1 package Tenderflake mini tart shells, 18 pack

For the Chocolate Orange Ganache

• ▢ ½ cup 35% whipping cream
• ▢ 4 ounce semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
• ▢ 1 tablespoon salted butter, softened
• ▢ 1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
• ▢ ½ tablespoon Triple Sec liqueur

For the Fresh Orange Cream

• ▢ ½ cup 35% whipping cream
• ▢ 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
• ▢ 2 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

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Instructions

1. Bake the mini tart shells according to package instructions. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
2. Arrange the tart shells on a tray that will fit in your fridge, and set the tray next to your stove.

For the Chocolate Orange Ganace

1. In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Once you see bubbles, remove the pan from the heat and add the chocolate. Use a whisk to stir the chocolate into the warm cream.
2. Once the chocolate has melted, add the orange zest, butter and liqueur and stir to combine.
3. Fill the mini tart shells with about 1 tablespoon of the chocolate orange ganache.
4. Once all of the mini tart shells have been filled, put them into the fridge. It will take about an hour for the chocolate to set.

For the Fresh Orange Cream

1. Whip the cream with a hand mixer until soft peaks form. Then add the sugar and beat on a low setting (to prevent the sugar from flying everywhere) until just combined. Lastly, add the freshly squeezed orange juice and whip until you have a thick cream that forms firm peaks.

To Decorate the Tarts

1. Spoon the orange cream into a piping bag, and add a star tip. Carefully pipe a star shape onto each tart, and top with candied peel or shaved chocolate.

Notes

Tip: Chop your chocolate on a cutting board covered with parchment or wax paper. Then you can just pick up the paper and shake the chocolate into the saucepan, instead of trying to brush it off the cutting board.

The fresh orange cream is adapted from Sunkist.

Please read the full blog post for all of my tips, variations, and recommendations for this recipe.

Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary depending on specific ingredients and brands used. Accuracy cannot be guaranteed.

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Disclosure:
This post is sponsored by Tenderflake.
This brand provides financial support that helps me to create new content for this blog.
Please note that I only work with brands that I use at home and trust.