Cake Tart – Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

I saw a very interesting recipe on TerroreSplendore. It was for a cake in pastry crust with a layer of spreadable cream on the base. I decided that I would like to try something similar. So used that recipe as a base for this Cake Tart -Chocolate Hazelnut Spread.

However I did make some changes. I wanted to use my own version of a shortcrust pastry for the base. I also wanted to use a chocolate hazelnut spread to cover that base. The final change was to use the zest from oranges rather than lemon. That was because orange goes so well with a chocolate flavour.

Now, using the spread was very good but you could easily substitute it with something else, like raspberry jam.

A store bought pastry case might also work quite well. Particularly an unbaked one.

This is actually a simple recipe, even though there are distinct stages to it. Each of those stages is easy to perform. But since there are those three stages I will mark this as a medium difficulty recipe.

So it requires a pastry case, a layer of filling to be spread and then a layer of cake batter on the top.

It all makes a very good dessert, with the buttery pastry, the chocolate hazelnut and orange flavour and a wonderfully light cake.

I used an 8 inch/23cm cake pan with a removable base, but a pie dish of the same proportions would work well too.

My Bake

I baked my Tart Cake for 40 minutes. The pastry cooked through to a lovely tender texture. The cake rose well and turned a lovely golden brown colour on the top.

I tested the cake with a skewer, which came out clean. So I removed it from the oven and left it in the pan for 15 minutes. Then I transferred it to a wire rack to cool completely. The top flattened just a little as it cooled, which was to be expected.

The taste was wonderful, with the pastry almost melting in the mouth. The soft cake texture mixed easily with the chocolate hazelnut spread too. I enjoyed it immensely, with a nice cup of tea. However I enjoyed it even more when I served some with a lovely creamy custard.

Another lovely recipe for dessert, particularly for this time of year, is Apple Pie With Crumble Top

Cake Tart – Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Recipe by Geoffcoo(adapted from TerroreSplendore)Course: Cakes, DessertsCuisine: DessertDifficulty: Medium

Servings

8

servings

Prep/Waiting time

1

hour 

Cooking time

40

minutes

Ingredients

• Pastry

• 160g(1 cup + 1 tbsp, based on scooping packed flour into a 250ml cup) plain flour

• 50g(1/4 cup) caster sugar

• 113g(1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cubed

• 1 medium egg yolk(large in USA)

• 30ml(2 tbsp) ice cold water

• 1.5g(1/4 tsp) salt

• Zest from one orange, grated

• Cake

• 90g(2/3 cup minus 1 tbsp, based on scooping packed flour into a 250ml cup) plain flour

• 60g(5 tbsp minus 1 tsp) caster sugar

• 3 medium eggs(large in USA)

• 22ml(1 1/2 tbsp) vegetable oil

• zest from one orange, grated

• pinch of salt

• Filling

• 150g(7 tbsp) Chocolate hazelnut spread, or similar

Directions

• To make the pastry place the flour, sugar, salt and zest into the bowl of a food processor and pulse to mix through.
• Add the butter and pulse repeatedly until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
• Add the egg yolk and most of the water(retain a couple of teaspoons and add if needed) and process until everything combines and clumps into a lovely soft dough.
• Turn the dough onto a work surface and knead a few times to ensure all is combined.
• Roll the dough out, on a floured surface to a diameter of 10 inches/25 cm.
• Carefully transfer to an 8 inch/23cm cake pan, lining the sides and base. ( I rolled out on floured plastic wrap and slid my removable base between the rolled dough and the plastic for ease, folding the excess over for simple transfer).
• Chill the pastry for 45 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/350F.
• Carefully spread the chocolate hazelnut spread over the base of the pastry and place back in the fridge.
• Place the eggs and sugar into a large bowl( I did this in my stand mixer, whisking for 7 minutes), and whisk them together until the mixture is thick and pale and very airy., adding the zest part way through.
• Drizzle the oil in and whisk thoroughly.
• Spoon the flour onto the top and gently fold it in until fully combined, without knocking the air out of the mixture.
• Spoon the batter onto the chocolate hazelnut spread.
• Spread the batter to level it off.
• Bake in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the cake has risen and has turned a light golden brown.
• Test with a skewer to ensure the cake is baked, then remove from the oven and cool for 15 minutes(if using a cake pan with a removable base) then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.