A toasted pecan crust with a rich caramel filling, topped with a dark chocolate glaze. This Salted Caramel Tart is a beautiful, delicious dessert that is sure to impress!
Tart Pans
Last year when I was visiting my parents, I saw a tart pan in my mom’s cabinet. I made an off comment about needing to get one for myself. As she’s my mom, and moms generally like to give you things (I get this as I am a mom too), I left her house with a tart pan.
What is the difference between a tart, torte, and pie?
I loved my new pan, but realized that I didn’t know quite when to call something a tart, torte, or pie. Finally, I got it straightened out:
Tart: A pasty crust with shallow sides. The top of the tart is usually open, without a pastry top.
Pie: A pastry with taller sides and may have pastry over the top of the filling.
Torte: Rich, dense cake that is usually multilayer. They tend to have little or no flour.
There is certainly some debate about which category some dishes fit into, but this recipe is certainly a tart.
Salted Caramel Tart
Creating the crust
The crust is made with:
- Pecans
- All purpose flour
- Light brown sugar
- Butter
- Maple syrup
- Sea salt
The ingredients are mixed together, pressed into the bottom of the tart pan, and baked for 11-13 minutes.
When the tart comes out of the oven, there may be areas where the crust bubbles up. While the crust is still hot, you can press the elevated areas down using the bottom of a metal measuring cup or with a large metal spoon.
Patience is key with the caramel filling
Caramel is tough to make. I decided to stop posting recommended times because I find that it can vary from stove to stove, and even day to day. Instead, I’ll tell you what it should look like.
- Place the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until the sugar melts. At this point it still looks like water.
- Keep stirring. The mixture will eventually turn to a dry, granulized sugary appearance and you may think, “I’ve ruined it.” Nope, you haven’t. Keep stirring.
- Eventually the sugar will melt again and turn an amber color and have a nutty smell. Be patient. Don’t turn up the heat too high to speed it up! You must be patient as trying to speed it up will quickly give you burned caramel sauce.
Chocolate Glaze
The topping is rich, chocolate ganache. Ingredients are:
- Heavy whipping cream
- Dark chocolate
- Corn syrup
I prefer dark chocolate as it pairs nicely with the sweet caramel. However, if you are anti-dark chocolate you could use semi-sweet chocolate. Milk chocolate would work, but would be exceptionally sweet.
A teaspoon of corn syrup gives the ganache a nice sheen, and makes it easier to spread.
Serving
Sprinkle a tiny bit of kosher salt and chopped pecans over the top of the glaze for an extra bit of flavor and crunch. Finally, serve it as-is or topped with some fresh whipped cream!
This Salted Caramel Tart is a gorgeous, delicious, rich dessert that is perfect for any occasion!
Salted Caramel Tart
Ingredients
Pecan Crust
- 1 cup pecans halves
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar packed
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Caramel Filling
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Chocolate Topping
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 5 ounces dark chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon corn syrup
- Chopped pecans and kosher salt for serving
Instructions
Pecan Crust
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place pecans, flour, brown sugar, and salt in food processor. Pulse until mixture turns into crumbles. Stir in butter and maple syrup.
- Press mixture into bottom and on sides of a 9″ round tart pan (push down with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup if needed).
- Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown. If parts of the crust rise up, press down with glass or metal measuring cup while crust is still hot. Let cool completely before filling.
Caramel Filling
- Heat sugar and water in saucepan over medium heat. Stir continuously until sugar turns amber in color (first the sugar will melt, then the mixture will crystalize, then it will melt again and turn the amber color). Remove from heat.
- Whisk in butter, 1/2 tablespoon at a time.
- Stir in whipping cream and sea salt. Pour into shell and chill until set (about 4 hours).
Chocolate Topping
- Place chocolate chips and corn syrup in a heat safe bowl.
- In a microwave safe bowl, heat whipping cream until it boils. Pour over chocolate chips.
- Let sit for 2-3 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Spread over top of chilled caramel.
- Sprinkle chopped pecans and kosher salt over top of tart if desired.
Disclaimer: All nutritional information provided on this website is an estimate only and is not guaranteed.
If you enjoyed this Salted Caramel Tart, you may also enjoy these other SugarSpicesLife recipes:
Strawberry Peach Galette
Flourless Chocolate Torte
Triple Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Raspberry Torte
