I hate it when I make this tart. Really….I do. Because every time, I want to have just a “little more” of the delicious, bittersweet tart, and then……..just a little more (and the struggle goes on). It’s hard to resist with it’s chocolatle nut based crust, and it’s creamy, dark chocolate, decadent layer of pure chocolate goodness.
Very hard to resist.
Really, I can’t even believe that I am sharing this recipe at all. There are a few recipes a cook should always keep to themselves as “chef’s secrets”. Signature dishes that only they know how to make. Yet, here I am sharing it with the world (well, whoever of the world wants to read my blog, that is). Know, dear readers, that you are loved, as I give you one of my most loved recipes.
I served this for my husband’s birthday party, and it may have just been my imagination, but it seemed like all of the guy’s were hungrily looking for more after their piece was eaten (oh yes, there was more, but the leftovers had already been whisked into the fridge for my husband…..for me to have later. (Hey, there wasn’t enough for them all to have a second piece, so I was just protected them from having to fight over the last pieces * wink*).
This recipe was adapted from the book The Secrets of Baking by Sheryl Yard. The book has everything sweet and unhealthy in it, but made very well and gourmet. While I no longer use white sugar and refined flour, I have often been able to adapt a few of her recipes, and this is one of them. I’ve taken the crust recipe from Sally Fallon (altered to become a chocolate crust), and made this recipe a grain free, gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, delicious dessert.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Deep Dark Chocolate TartBecause it’s so rich, it’s nice to serve this with something to cut the richness. Raspberry sauce, like pictured above works well, as does orange segments (which is how we serve it in the winter). You can also easily vary the sweetness of this tart. I love it bittersweet, but you could certainly sweeten it more.
I’ve made this in tart pans, pie pie pans and springform pans, but have found that pans with removable bottoms work the best. So use either a tart pan with a removable bottom, or a springfrom pan.
Crust: Grease a springform pan with coconut oil, and set aside.
2 cups of almonds (or choice of nuts)
1/4 cup of cocoa powder
1/2 cup of arrowroot powder, or sprouted wheat flour (only use wheat flour if you can have gluten)
2/3 cup of coconut oil softened (or butter)
1/4 cup of coconut sugar, honey, rapadura, maple sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (make sure it’s gluten free, if needed)
1/2 teaspoon saltPreheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place almonds in a food processor, and process until a coarse flour, add the rest of the ingredients and process until it forms a uniform dough. Press down into the greased pan and bake for 8-12 minutes or until the top is slightly browned.
Take out of the oven and cool. Once the crust is cool, making the filling.
8 ounces of unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons coconut oil (butter can be substituted)
1/4 cup of coconut sugar, plus two tablespoon honey, or more coconut sugar (all honey can be used as well. Honey will be sweeter than coconut sugar. Rapadura or maple syrup/sugar are also options).
1 1/2 cups of coconut cream (if you can’t find coconut cream, you can use a full fat coconut milk and skim the fatty top of the top. You will need two 14 ounce cans for that. Cream can be substituted.)
Dash of salt
2 tablespoons brewed coffee or espresso1-Finely chop the chocolate and place it in a medium size, heatproof bowl. Add the coconut oil and the sweetener, mix it into the chopped chocolate a little.
2-Heat the coconut cream on the stove until very hot. Pour over the chocolate and tap the bowl on the counter to settle the chocolate. Let this sit for about one minute to start melting the chocolate. Using a rubber spatula (heatproof), slowly stir in a circular motion, starting from the center of the bowl. Stir for about two minutes (the mixture should be melted and the temperature 90 degrees, though I never check the temperature).
3- Add the coffee and stir until incorporated. Pour this over the crust and carefully place it in the fridge to set. It will take about an hour to set. Cover with plastic wrap once all the way cool. Will keep at least three days in the fridge (if you can resist that long!).
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Ricki Martin
I am sooo happy to find your blog. I Love to cook and I have recently decided to cut out all refined sugars and flours from my diet. Things have been going well and I have made lots of yummy discoveries. But with Valentine’s Day coming I have been CRAVING something chocolate cheesecake like. This recipe looks amazing. I will be trying lots of things on your site and linking it to my blog if that’s okay?
Thanks so much!
Janet
I am excited to try your Tart recipe for a vegan gourmet dinner I am planning for Thursay June 24th. Our “Gourmet Group” has been together for 18 years and this will be our first vegan or vegetarian dinner. Because of my husbands health issues, we began eating a vegan, gluten free and as close to sugar free as possible, diet three months ago. Yesterday I shopped at a local co-op which carries raw coconut crystals by Coconut Secret, but nothing that was called coconut sugar. Do you know if this is the same but just called cystals rather than sugar? I want to be sure that your recipe turns our right. Thanks so much.
KimiHarris
I think that should be the same thing. 🙂
Ina
Hi. I am going to make this one for mothers day actually. And I am very excited to try it. But its not completly accurate to say it is sugar free when you have coconut sugar or maple syrup in it, is it? I mean for a diabetes person, it doesent make the big difference I think. The body will still recognize it as sugar and increase the blood sugar level. Or am I wrong…? A friend of mine uses Palm Sugar, and swears to it. Maybe healthier, but still sugar..? Do you have any information about this effect in the body?
Terri Spezzano
You are correct.
Honeychka
Just made this last night – super delicious and super easy to make! Thank kyou for the great recipe!What is that pretty red dripped on the top?
Yoli
Hello, wondering if this recipe mean a 1/4 cup each or just pick one? 1/4 cup of coconut sugar, honey, rapadura, maple sugar
Thank you,
Yoli
christina
I made this for Christmas last year and again this year. Last year we thought the crust needed a little sweetening, so this year I added 3 dates, and 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips to the nuts. I used 1/2 walnuts and 1/2 pecans. I also switched the cocoa powder and arrowroot ratios to increase the chocolate flavor. I also decreased the coconut oil to 1/2 cup and that helped to firm up the crust a bit. For the filling, I used Kahlua instead of coffee. It all turned out great! Thanks for a wonderful recipe that the whole family (even those with allergies) can enjoy.
reeve
This looks amazing!! How important is the coffee? I’m allergic to coffee so I would have to leave it out or substitute for something else.
Jenni
Hi, this looks divine…! Just wondering if one could substitute coconut flour for arrowroot powder? Also, why must we skim the fat off of coconut milk? I find everything good seems to be in the top half of a can of organic coconut milk, are we suppose to take all of that off? There would only be half a can of watery substance left…?
Thanks!
KimiHarris
The opposite! Skim of the fatty part to use in the recipe. 🙂
KimiHarris
The opposite! Skim off the fatty part to use in the recipe. 🙂
Lindann
Yum! Yum! Yum!
Made this last week to take to a small group where there are those who need to be gluten free or dairy free. This was spectacular for everyone!!! i love to cook delicious and good for you food. Thank you for taking the time to give us wonderful recipes.
Judy
Love your website and recipes. Just made this delicious dessert – turned out better than expected. Only used 100 gms of dark chocolate and added 2 tablespoons of Dutch cocoa and 2 tablespoons of ghee (it’s had all the lactose taken out of it, so it’s fine for those that can’t have dairy). I used walnuts for the base, as I’m intolerant to almonds, and once again used ghee instead of coconut oil for the base. This recipe is sure going to be a keeper. Thanks again for all your hard work in spreading the word about healthy eating and cooking.
Judy
Love the website and your passion for healthy food. Just made this dessert today and it’s a keeper. Family is wheat and dairy intolerant and no-one could believe how good this tart tasted. I only used 100 gms of chocolate and added 2 tablespoons of Dutch cocoa and 2 tablespoons of ghee to make up the difference -I also doubled the sugar and it was perfect.
lynne
Just recently discovered your website and love it already! This looks incredible and I can’t wait to make it. What size springform pan did you use? Also, I’m making this for a diabetic friend. Any idea how xylitol might work as the sweetener?
Emmy (Wine and Butter)
I made this tart this weekend and it was incredible! Seriously amazing and I am not an adept baker! We made some slight variations (more cocoa powder a bit more maple syrup, plus we halved the recipe). Here is a link to my blog post for anyone who wants the variation!
http://wineandbutter.com/?p=421
xx
Nikki
I don’t have access to canned coconut milk… do you know how I could make coconut milk with enough fat to make this?
Anna
Thanks for the wonderful recipe, Kimi! I made this for my Mom’s birthday and it was quite a hit. I did use a bit more honey than called for and opted for butter over the coconut oil…with amazing end results! Have you ever thought about publishing a cookbook with all the recipes and photos from your website? I, for one, would be very interested!
Becky
Hi – this sounds delicious – just wondering if it would work with cacao powder instead of unsweetened chocolate???
Ellen (Gluten Free Diva)
This will be perfect for Passover. Thank you!!!!
Elizabeth
Hi there,
This does look amazing. However, I am a little confused with the sugar free part. I am on a completely sugar free diet and this seems to challenge that :(.
KimiHarris
Elizabeth,
This recipe is “refined sugar-free”. 🙂 You could try stevia in this recipe, though I haven’t yet.
Tracy
This is one of the best-tasting desserts that I’ve had since starting on my clean-eating journey almost two years ago. I made this deep dark [and scrumptious!] chocolate tart two days ago (I also reviewed the recipe on my blog) and I give it my highest commendation/praise as this recipe doesn’t fall short on taste, texture, or appearance and it is easy to make. Thanks for sharing this delicious recipe Kimi!!!
CJ @ Morsels of Life
This definitely looks like some tasty eats! (And no one has to know it’s relatively healthy too, right?) 🙂
Genet
I made this for a big crowd yesterday (most of whom would never have chosen a gluten, grain & dairy free dessert) and got rave reviews all the way around. I will definitely make it again! (My springform pan had another dessert in it, so I used a cake pan lined with parchment and it worked great.)
m ichelle
ummm. WOW! i could Not stop tasting it….and that was just the uncooked crust. i havent even finished the rest yet! thank you!
m ichelle
ummm. WOW! i could Not stop tasting it….and that was just the uncooked crust. i havent even finished the rest yet! thank you!
Katie
Hi Kimi, do you have a suggestion for making the crust GAPS legal? Could I sub coconut flour for arrowroot? Do you think I would need the full half cup? I don’t have tons of experience with coconut flour. Any suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks so much. I love your recipes!!
Katie
Hi Kimi, do you have a suggestion for making the crust GAPS legal? Could I sub coconut flour for arrowroot? Do you think I would need the full half cup? I don’t have tons of experience with coconut flour. Any suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks so much. I love your recipes!!
Katie
Hi Kimi, do you have a suggestion for making the crust GAPS legal? Could I sub coconut flour for arrowroot? Do you think I would need the full half cup? I don’t have tons of experience with coconut flour. Any suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks so much. I love your recipes!!
Katie
Hi Kimi, do you have a suggestion for making the crust GAPS legal? Could I sub coconut flour for arrowroot? Do you think I would need the full half cup? I don’t have tons of experience with coconut flour. Any suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks so much. I love your recipes!!
Katie
Ooh, sorry for all the identical posts! My phone was being slow, I guess.
Renata
Hi, this looks amazing but can this be modified to be dairy? Can I use heavy whipping cream instead of coconut cream? Also, what is that raspberry sauce recipe? How many will this serve?
Patricia
I used heavy whipping cream because my coconut milk wasn’t separating, even after hours in the fridge. The filling turned out to be a dark color, not a light color like in your picture. IS that a stock photo or the actual dessert you made?
Maybe it will come out lighter with coconut cream?
KimiHarris
Nope! This is my own photo! I think the color can also look different on different monitors too.
Jo
Wow this is really fantastic I made it for my husbands 40th birthday and it went down an absolute treat (he is a chocoholic!!!). Lots of comments on how different and absolutely delicious it tasted and these comments come from friends who have never heard of rapadura or mixing chocolate with coconut cream!
Thanks x
Sarah W.
If I wanted to just use almond meal instead of grinding whole nuts, do you know how much I should use for the crust?
Thx!
Eliza
Hi Kimi,
when you say 1/4 cup of coconut sugar, honey, rapadura, maple sugar, do you mean 1/4 of each or do I just pick one?
Thanks
Aletta Karsies van Eeden
She surely means one of those – I at made it with 1/4 cup rapadura and that worked fine.