Coffee and Chocolate Mazarin Tartlets

Coffee. Chocolate. Almond. Enough said.

This recipe takes inspiration from multiple places. Firstly, I did a collaboration with a fellow food - Mira Andreotti. Seeing her inspirational bakes using marzipan I decided to experiment with these flavours.

The filling for these tarts is based on a delicious dessert I love to make from one of my favourite cookbooks: The Scandi Kitchen by Breontë Aurell. It is a mazarin filling, which is very similar to a frangipane - using marzipan instead of ground almonds. I've added in ground coffee but mainly kept the quantities the same.

The pastry is taken from Nigella Lawson and is my favourite pastry recipe ever. It uses cream cheese and cream instead of eggs. I really like this because it means you can easily half the pastry quantities without having to worry about working out how to half an egg etc. It is also super simple and produces the perfect flaky pastry. The chocolate ganache is my own tried and tested recipe. It's rich and dark, which pairs wonderfully with the coffee filling. Enjoy!

Coffee and Chocolate Mazarin Tartlets

Makes 12 tarts

Pastry

• 150g plain flour

• 1 tbsp white sugar

• 85g cold butter, diced

• 85g cold cream cheese

• 2-3 tbsp double cream

Filling

• 50g butter, cubed

• 50g white sugar

• 1/2 tsp instant coffee

• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

• 75g marzipan, cubed

• 1 egg

• 30g plain flour

• 1/2 tsp cocoa powder

Chocolate ganache

• 10g butter

• 100ml double cream

• 100g dark chocolate, chopped

• 1 handful almonds chopped

(Notes, substitutions and variations found below the method)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC/160oC(fan). Find a 12-hole tart tin.

2. Pastry: If using a food processor, pulse the dry ingredients together, then add the butter and cream and pulse to a crumbly mixture. Bind together with the cream, pulsing sparingly. Wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for 20 minutes. Then roll out to thickness of a 1 pound coin. Using a cutter make 12 rounds and place in your tart tin. Prick the bottom of each pastry case with a fork and place in the oven for 7 minutes.

3. Mazarin filling: cream together the butter, sugar, coffee and vanilla. Add the marzipan in peices and whisk until light and creamy. Add the egg and beat until smooth. Fold in the flour and cocoa powder so they are thoroughly combined.

4. Remove the pastry cases from the oven and fill with the filling. Pop back in the oven for 10 minutes until the filling is golden and just set. Leave to cool completely.

5. Chocolate ganache: Place the cream and butter in a microwaveable bowl. Place in the microwave for 30-40 seconds until the mixture nearly boils. Add in the chocolate and leave to stand for 1 minute, then stir so the chocolate melts and it becomes glossy. Pour the ganache on the cooled tarts and sprinkle with chopped almonds. Leave to set in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Notes, substitutions and variations

• Marzipan: Find a recipe for making marzipan here.

• Flour: experiment with gluten free flour, it should work pretty well for this bake.

• Cream: You can use dairy free alternatives - such as oat.

• Butter: Use a dairy free alternative here if you need to.

• Coffee: I like to use the espesso powders, but any instant coffee will be fine.