Chocolate Meringue Tart

The chocolate meringue tart is an elegant and delicious dessert that combines the crunchiness of shortcrust pastry, the creaminess of chocolate, and the lightness of meringue. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

• 300 g of type 00 flour
• 150 g of cold butter, cubed
• 130 g of icing sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 yolk
• Grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)
• A pinch of salt

For the chocolate cream:

• 200 g of dark chocolate
• 200 ml of fresh cream
• 50 ml of whole milk
• 2 yolks
• 30 g of sugar

For the meringue:

• 2 egg whites
• 100 g of sugar
• A pinch of salt

Preparation

1. Start with the shortcrust pastry: in a bowl, mix the flour with the icing sugar and salt. Add the cold butter and work the mixture with your fingertips until sandy.
2. Add the egg, the yolk, and lemon zest, then quickly knead until you form a homogeneous dough ball. Wrap it in cling film and let it rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
3. Roll out the shortcrust pastry into an even layer and line a pre-buttered and floured tart mold. Prick the bottom with a fork, cover with parchment paper and dried legumes, and bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 15 minutes in “blind baking” mode.
4. For the chocolate cream, finely chop the chocolate. Heat the cream with the milk and, as soon as it boils, pour it over the chocolate. Mix until the chocolate melts.
5. In another bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar and add them to the chocolate mixture, mixing well until you get a smooth cream.
6. Pour the chocolate cream onto the now cooked and dry tart base, then allow it to cool and rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
7. For the meringue, beat the egg whites until stiff with a pinch of salt, adding sugar a little at a time until you get a glossy and firm mixture.
8. Spread the meringue on the tart using a piping bag or simply a spatula, creating peaks and designs as you like.
9. With a culinary torch, caramelize the surface of the meringue until golden.

Allow the chocolate meringue tart to cool before serving.

Curiosity

Unlike French or Swiss meringue, Italian meringue involves beating the sugar while it’s hot, resulting in a more stable and glossy consistency, perfect for decorating baked desserts like our tart.