Chocolate Chestnut Tart - Baking Chez Moi

Per Nana ~

This is an incredible dessert and so decadent.  

I thought the best part was the syrup made from sugar and vanilla bean, 

added to the chestnuts.  The chocolate ganache came together beautifully 

and when it was added to the tart, looked fantastic.  Because it is so rich in 

flavor, I only served small portions and did not serve ice cream with it. I also

 didn't have any :) And the leftover syrup I have saved for another time. 

I chilled the remaining tart and found that the next day it tasted just

 like fudge with a crust. I loved it and just cut small portions. This 

is definitely a recipe I will make again, it is so impressive. 

Per Tricia ~

We knew the family would love this one because Nana sent

 over a portion of hers ahead of time. So I had to deliver on 

this one because of course, the family wanted more :) 

That said, the unsuspecting and not too complicated recipe got a 

disproportionate share of grumbling from me simply because it's the 

busy holiday season and I had lots of wonderful competition for my 

time- which did not include roasting and peeling chestnuts. 

Internet lies...that new technique of blanching & cutting a single line (not X) before roasting only added to the time lost.

I should have known better and bought a pricey jar of the ready to go 

version, but I got caught up in the cozy holiday illusion of how fun it 

would be to do these myself. That ship has sailed and took with it the 

immediate thought of making those stained glass cookies we are to 

also knock out this month too (we'll see about that one.....)

Vanilla specks in the syrup makes these chestnuts on the tart bottom delicious.

That said, the final version truly was a "company worthy" little dessert. 

My complaints are unjustified considering last year I was staring down a 

gingerbread Buche de Noel.  Great coordination and planning makes a big 

difference in this recipe, since it relies on a few different processes/steps to

 create the final product. Making the tart crust ahead of time, roasting and 

shelling the chestnuts, and then prepping the syrup too -  so that the vanilla 

chestnut combo (which takes about 45 minutes to cook down) doesn't 

blindside you - would all have made a big difference in my knocking this out.

  Truthfully we are simply not that HUGE of chestnut fans for me 

to likely be making this one again, but that is no reflection on the recipe. 

 I was happy to try it this once and the family is certainly 

enjoying round two after tasting Nana's :)   

 Happiest of Holidays to All ~

This marks another Tuesday recipe testing as we cook along with the "Tuesdays with Dorie" online group.  Please note that we do not post the recipes, per the group rules, but we do encourage others to RUN out and buy their own copy of Dorie Greenspan's "Baking Chez Moi".  Better yet, buy the book and JOIN THE GROUP ! www.TuesdaysWithDorie.wordpress.com