RASPBERRY MOUSSE MINI TARTS WITH ROSEMARY SHORTBREAD CRUST
Second Runner Up Championship Finale
Netflix Challenge: Take a dessert that I make often and transform it into something with a filling that has 24 servings.
My Inspiration: One of my favorite cookies is a rosemary shortbread, as the savory flavor and buttery texture pair so well. I turned the cookie dough into a tart shell, lined it with dark chocolate and filled it with fresh raspberries and raspberry mousse. The result was a stepped up version of a family favorite, fit for a crowd.
For the crust, in a medium bowl stir together melted butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Stir in flour and rosemary.
Using your fingers, press the pastry mixture evenly into bottom and up the sides of 12 mini tart pans.
Place the tart pans on a baking sheet. Fill with foil and beans and blind bake for 15 minutes.
Remove foil and beans and put in a 350F oven for 5 minutes more but check.
White Chocolate Raspberry Mousse
Strain the thawed raspberries over a fine sieve and collect ½ cup of raspberry juice.
Heat the ½ cup cream, raspberry juice and butter in a saucepan to scald (you can heat the mixture on low and let set to infuse the cream with more raspberry flavor if needed).
Bloom the gelatin sheets in cold water for 3 to 5 minutes then squeeze all the water out.
Add to the hot raspberry cream mixture and heat until gelatin is completely melted.
Pour over the chocolate pieces and let them stand to melt the chocolate. If it is too cold to completely melt the chocolate, microwave it for 10 second blasts to completely melt the chocolate.
Mix well to incorporate into a smooth mixture.
Mix in the cold cream until well combined and smooth.
Stir in lemon juice and raspberry powder.
Strain into a 9x13 inch pan, and place into the fridge or freezer to fully set.
Whip to desired consistency, but you can only whip it one, it will break if you try and whip it twice.
You can thin out with cream if it is too thick.
Assembly
3 oz. dark chocolate, 70% cocoa, melted
2 pints fresh raspberries
Freeze dried raspberries for dusting
Powdered sugar for dusting
Melt chocolate in 30-second bursts in the microwave and place in a small bowl. Using a small art brush, brush each tart shell with 1/2 teaspoon of melted dark chocolate. Cut a fresh raspberry in half and place both halves on top of the chocolate. Fill tart shells with raspberry mousse and place a whole fresh raspberry on top. Grate a freeze dried raspberry through a fine sieve to dust the tops, and then dust with powdered sugar.
Tell us what you think!