Chocolate Almond and Thyme Tarts

Hannah Sunderani
Feb 24, 2017
4 min read

These Vegan Chocolate Almond and Thyme Tarts. Lock me up and throw away the key - with one in each hand please! This might be one of the BEST chocolate desserts I've eaten to date. The crunchy almond base, paired with soft inner chocolate mousse is a sweet dream. I'll be sleeping soundly to this picture for weeks.

It's a stunning dessert that is healthy....ish? I mean, that is if you have enough self restraint to practice your portion control. The base is wholesome and natural; made with ground almonds, oats, cocoa powder, coconut oil, maple syrup, cinnamon and salt. For the mousse, I used my vegan chocolate pots recipe, loosely adapted from Jamie Oliver's. You might remember from last time this mousse requires silken tofu, blended with dark chocolate, cocoa powder, rum, vanilla and sea salt. And I promise it will amaze you how this bean curd transforms into smooth and creamy Chantilly peaks. That's because silken tofu is different to regular or firm - it's fine and delicate. You'll notice this right when you open the package; you can barely hold it without it falling apart. The taste is delicate as well, it's incredibly subtle so it easily takes on whatever flavours you add - in this case, chocolate! So, before you turn down the idea of tofu chocolate mousse (or worry your vegan skeptic friends will feel betrayed to hear they're eating a tofu dessert) serve them this chocolate tart and watch as they fight over the last piece. It's as good, if not better, than the real thing.

Heck; if I had a do-over I'd serve this chocolate tart at my wedding! No joke - I'd be the bride in the back kitchen, tasting every batch as they go out. Meanwhile my guests would be so overjoyed with this decadent dessert they wouldn't even notice I was missing. And actually, my favourite past about this dessert is the sea salt. The salt really helps to ignite the flavours in this dessert, picking up the chocolate and sweet maple. If I've learned anything about baking it's that everything is better with a pinch or two of salt. I like to think of salt, sweet and chocolate as the R, G and B of the foodie flavour wheel. You need them all to taste the rainbow. So then, what does that make the almonds and thyme? Er - let's call them the sparkle! An absolute head turner to say the least!

Next time you're in the market for a stunning dessert try these Chocolate Almond and Thyme Tarts. Enjoy every decadent bite lovelies!

Chocolate Almond and Thyme Tarts

Serves: 3 | Prep Time: 30 mins| Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

For the pie crust:

1 1/4 cup large flake oats
3/4 cups almond flour (ground almonds)
1/3 cup melted coconut oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp cocoa powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

For the chocolate mousse filling:

500g silken tofu (1 packet)
100g vegan dark chocolate (1 bar)
1 tsp coconut oil
45ml maple syrup (3 tbsp)
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp dark rum
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup almond milk

For topping:

fresh thyme
almonds, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Toss your almonds and oats into a food processor and blend until finely ground. In a saucepan melt coconut oil on medium-high heat, add maple syrup, cocoa powder, salt, and cinnamon, and stir to combine. Add liquid mixture to the food processor and blend pie crust ingredients it becomes a dough-like texture (approx. 3-5 minutes).
Create your tart shells by pressing the pie mixture into the bottom and edges of the tart pans and up the sides. (I used three 6-inch tart pans with removable bottoms, but you can modify the number of tarts and their size depending on what you have handy). Make the tart shells approx. 1/2 cm in thickness. Place tart shells in the oven to bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Then remove from oven and let tarts cool completely before popping them out of the pans. Clean food processor for next steps.
While you're waiting for the tart shells to cool prepare your chocolate mousse filling. Strain excess water from the silken tofu by placing it in a fine mesh bag (used for making nut milk), or by bunching up a thin dish towel, or clean tights. Squeeze out all the excess water and then transfer tofu to your food processor. Blend tofu for 2-3 minutes or until silky and smooth.
Add 2 inches water to a medium sized pot and bring to a simmer. Place a large glass bowl on top of the pot making sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water. Add chocolate and coconut oil to the bowl to melt, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
Add melted chocolate to food processor along with, maple syrup, cocoa powder, rum, vanilla, sea salt and almond milk. Blend until completely smooth and combined.
Scoop chocolate mouse filling into tart shells and smoothen to an even layer. Top tarts with fresh thyme and chopped almonds.