Sugared Raspberry Recipe

Make dough

In a large bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt. Cut cold diced butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or fingers until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.

Form & chill

Sprinkle cold water over the mixture 1 tablespoon at a time and gently fold until dough just comes together (add a little more water only if needed). Shape into a disk, wrap in plastic, and chill in the refrigerator 30–45 minutes.

Roll & bake

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Roll chilled dough on lightly floured surface to about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. Cut rounds or desired shapes to make small tart shells (makes 8–10 tartlets). Line tartlet pans or a baking sheet, press dough into pans. Dock bottoms with a fork. Bake 12–14 minutes until set. Let cool completely in pans on a rack before unmolding.

Heat milk

In a medium saucepan bring milk just to a simmer over medium heat; do not boil. Remove from heat.

Mix egg base

In a bowl whisk together egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch until pale and slightly thickened.

Temper eggs

Slowly drizzle about 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking constantly to temper. Then pour the tempered egg mixture back into the remaining milk in the saucepan.

Cook custard

Return saucepan to medium-low heat and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and comes to a gentle boil (about 2–4 minutes). Once thick, cook 30–60 seconds more while whisking to fully activate the cornstarch.

Finish

Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla. Pour pastry cream into a shallow bowl, cover surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin, and chill until cold, at least 2 hours.

Cook raspberries

Place raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring gently, until the raspberries break down and the mixture begins to thicken, about 6–8 minutes.

Strain and finish

For a smooth jam, push the cooked raspberry mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing to extract as much puree as possible and leaving seeds behind. If using pectin or glaze, stir it in now and heat briefly for 1 minute. Cool completely before using; refrigerate to speed cooling.

Prepare glaze

Place chopped bittersweet chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat the heavy cream until it just simmers, then pour over the chocolate. Let sit 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Stir in corn syrup and optional neutral oil for extra sheen.

Prepare crumbs

If you don't have ready-made chocolate cookie crumbs, pulse 10–12 chocolate sandwich cookies in a food processor until fine. Transfer crumbs to a shallow bowl for coating.

Fill shells with pastry cream

Once tart shells and pastry cream are cold, transfer pastry cream to a piping bag fitted with a plain round tip (or use a spoon). Pipe or spoon a layer of pastry cream into each tart shell, filling about two-thirds full.

Add raspberry jam center

Spoon about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of cooled raspberry filling into the center of each tart, creating a concentrated raspberry pocket on top of the pastry cream. Gently smooth the edges so the jam sits slightly recessed.

Glaze tarts

Dip the top of each filled tart into the warm (not hot) chocolate glaze or spoon glaze over the top to cover the pastry cream and jam. Allow excess glaze to drip off and let glaze set briefly (a few minutes).

Coat with cookie crumbs

While the glaze is still tacky, press the edges and sides of each tart into the chocolate cookie crumbs so the exterior is coated. For a more even coat, pour crumbs into a shallow bowl and roll each glazed tart gently in crumbs (avoiding the jam center).

Chill & finish

Place finished tarts on a rack and chill 30–45 minutes to set the glaze and firm the filling. Just before serving, dust lightly with powdered sugar for a sugared raspberry effect. Serve chilled or at cool room temperature.