Who doesn’t love chocolate? Well the combination of chocolate and chilli is now more popular than ever in both sweet and savoury cooling and this fantastic chocolate and chilli tart is one of those chocolate desserts that must be tried and the added kick from the chilli is something that we absolutely love. The recipe comes from Great British Chefs and it didn’t take long for us to decide that we had to share it with you all!

This recipe is a brilliant way to bring some much needed heat to kick start our British summer! You may look at this recipe and think to yourself that surely chilli doesn’t go with chocolate? You’ll have to trust us as the combination is too good to turn down! The rich taste of the dark chocolate combined with the buttery pastry is heavenly, and that’s before the chilli adds a fantastic kick! The lime zest and crème fraiche finish off what is a fantastic combination of flavours, contributing to a brilliant dessert! Thank you to the great people at Great British Chefs for posting this recipe!

 

Ingredients:

For the Chocolate and Chilli Filling

  • 350ml of double cream
  • 150ml of milk
  • 400g of 70% dark chocolate, chopped in to pieces
  • 3 to 4 tsp of chilli flakes
  • 2 eggs, beaten

For the Pastry

  • 250g of plain flour
  • 100g of icing sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 egg
  • 125g of unsalted butter, keep any extra for greasing your tin
  • 35g of ground almonds

To serve

  • Crème Fraiche
  • The zest of 1 lime

Instructions:

Step 1-Start making this delicious chocolate and chilli tart by preparing the pastry case. Add the flour, unsalted butter, ground almonds and icing sugar in to a mixing bowl. Add the egg and mix together well without using your hands when possible. Once it is well mixed, wrap it up in a piece of cling film and place it in the fridge for around 1 hour.

Step 2-Now the pastry is prepared and put to one side, you can start preparing the delicious filling. Add the 150ml of milk and 350ml of double cream to a saucepan and bring to the boil. Once it has reached this point, add the chilli flakes, take it off the heat, and allow the mixture to soak up the flavour of the chilli for about an hour.

Step 3-Take your loose base tart tin and grease it with some of the leftover unsalted butter. Take the pastry out of the fridge and push it in to the corners of the tin ensuring it is evenly spread out. Line with baking paper and fill with baking beads ready for baking.

Step 4-Set your oven to 190 degrees celcius/Gas mark 5 and once it has heated, bake the pastry for around 10 minutes until it is a delicious golden brown colour. Take the baking beads out carefully and return to the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes to ensure the base cooks. Again, once the base turns a golden brown colour, you will know it is finished. Once you are happy the pastry is cooked, take it out of the oven and glaze it with the egg yolk. This will seal the pastry ready for the chocolate and chilli filling later on.

Step 5-Now you can move on to the chocolate mixture which will form part of the filling. Take the 400g of dark chocolate and add it to a mixing bowl. Take the chilli cream which should have been infusing for the past hour and bring it back to the boil. Once it has reached the right temperature, pour it over the chocolate and stir in until the dark chocolate is completely melted. Add the beaten eggs in at the end and mix in.

Step 6-Turn your oven down to around 150 degrees celcius/Gas mark 2. Take the chocolate filling and pour it in to the pastry case you prepared earlier. Place it in the middle of your oven carefully and allow it to cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the filling is set. Once you are happy the mixture is set, take the tart out of the oven and allow to cool on the side, but do not put it in the fridge.

Step 7- We’re nearly there now! It is time to serve this delicious chocolate tart. Slice the tart with a knife and serve it with a serving of crème fraiche and the zest of a lime. Now you can take a bite of this delicious chocolate and chilli tart and you’ll love it!

Source: Great British Chefs 

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Loose Base Tart Tin
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From May 25th to May 31st, it is National BBQ Week here in Britain, so we’re hoping these barbecued chicken kebabs will encourage you to invite your family and friends round for a barbecue this bank holiday weekend.

If you are looking to capitalise on the fantastic weather we have been forecast for this bank holiday and the following week, then you should celebrate National BBQ Week by firing up the BBQ and making some of these marinated chicken kebabs. The recipe is one of Jamie Oliver’s own and it is a beauty! It is the perfect recipe to get the kids involved in, we guarantee they will enjoy arranging the skewers ready for cooking!

 

Ingredients:

For the Chicken Kebabs

  • 500g of boneless chicken breasts
  • 4 courgettes, sliced thinly lengthways
  • 6 to 8 skewers

For the Marinade

  • 1 handful of fresh coriander
  • 1 handful of fresh mint
  • 6 spring onions
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 red chilli
  • The juice and zest of 1 lemon
  • Sea salt
  • Black pepper
  • Olive oil

Instructions:

Step 1-Start by cutting the chicken breasts in to 2.5cm chunks and place in a bowl. Add the sliced courgette to boiling water and cook for no more than 30 seconds before removing, draining and allowing it to cool.

Step 2-Add all of the marinade ingredients apart from the olive oil to a food processor and mix. You are looking for the marinade ingredients to reach a paste consistency, so once you have blended them, add a bit of the olive oil to help bind together.

Step 3- Once you are happy with the paste, add it to the chicken chunks and allow the meat to soak up the marinade for at least an hour.

Step 4-Now you can start to prepare the skewers. Between each piece of chicken, add a piece of the courgette to the skewer and continue until each skewer is nearly full, be careful not to overfill the skewers!

Step 5- Fire up your barbecue and grill these delicious marinated chicken kebabs for about 5 minutes. It is important that you regularly turn each skewer while they are cooking to ensure an even cooking process.

Step 6- Once you are happy that these barbecued chicken kebabs are cooked, they are ready to serve alongside all the other delicious barbecue food you have prepared!

Source: Jamie Oliver