Mini Chocolate Raspberry Tarts

I hope everyone had a better week than I did. This was seriously the worst week of my life.

For some crazy reason, on Tuesday I decided to not eat chocolate and any kind of junk food for 3 days. Initially the purpose was just to gain self-discipline. I’m way too easy on myself. If I feel tired 15 mins into a run, I let myself stop. If I don’t feel like doing homework, I would spend all my time going on pinterest of Facebook for a bajillion hours. I didn’t like that, so I cut myself off from the one thing I love doing the most: eating chocolate and junk food. 

I thought, “It’s just chocolate, ptfff, I can go without that stuff for 3 days!” Little did I know…life went downhill after I made that crazy decision.

Things that normally wouldn’t go wrong, went wrong.

Things that normally do not bother me, made me want to pull out all of my hair. 

I was an emotional wreck! Most of the time I was angry, but I could feel myself falling back into depression. 

I just couldn’t control my emotions, and I couldn’t handle all the demands that school brought. 

I cried. 

My friends told me that I was “all over the place”. I still don’t know what they mean exactly, but I know it’s not a good thing.

With everything that was going wrong, you would think I was going against nature or something by not eating chocolate.

Today after school, I went for a run to shake off what I was feeling. But the endorphins did not help at all.

I KNEW that I needed to get some chocolate into my system, but I was so proud of myself about the 3 day chocolate fast that I didn’t want to ruin my streak. I came home and just stared at my 300g Lindt chocolate bar in all it’s golden gleam glory, contemplating on what to do. 

Screw it, I’m going to have chocolate! I gave in. After the first piece, my mood did a complete 180. My friend W- even said that she could tell the difference… through text!

I now know exactly how important chocolate is to me. I NEED it to function. Life realllly sucks without chocolate. Never will I do such a crazy thing again!

What are some crazy things you guys have pushed yourself to do? 

Chocolate Raspberry Tarts 

Ingredients

Tart:
1 1/2 c flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c room temp butter
1/4 c sugar
1 egg

Silky Chocolate Filling:
1/2 cup red raspberries
5ozs very good quality bittersweet chocolate
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg, at room temperature, stirred with a fork
3 large egg yolks, at room temperature, stirred with a fork
2 tbsps sugar 

How To For the Tart

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

1. Beat the butter until softened 

2. Add sugar, then beat til light and fluffy

3. Whisk the egg a little just to beat it up, then add it into the batter just until incorporated

4. Whisk the flour and salt together and add it ALL at once to the butter mixture. Mix until it forms into a dough ball.

5. Flatten the ball into a disk, wrap with plastic wrap, then refridgerate for 15-30 mins.

6. When cold and more firm, but not completely solid, press the dough into your mini muffin pan and bake for about 15 mins or until the edges are lightly browned. (Adjust time as needed if using another type of pan)

 How To For the Chocolate Filling

1. Centre the rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

2. Fill the tart crust with the raspberries.

3. Melt the chocolate and the butter in separate bowls either over simmering water or in the microwave. Allow them to cool until they feel only just warm.

4. Using a small whisk or rubber spatula, stir the egg into the chocolate, stir gently because you don’t want to beat air into the ganache. Little by little, stir in the egg yolks, then the sugar. Still working gently, stir in the warm melted butter. Pour the ganache over the raspberries in the prebaked tart shells.

5. Bake the batter for 11 minutes (less if you are making mini tarts) – that should be just enough time to turn the top of the tart dull, like the top of a cake. The center of the tart will shimmy if jiggled – that’s just what it’s supposed to do. Remove the tart from the oven, slide it onto a rack, and allow it to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.