These chocolate orange tarts are made from buttery homemade pastry shells, filled with a delicious orange curd and topped with whipped cream and a slice of Terry’s chocolate orange. And for extra chocolately flavour, they are brushed with melted chocolate before the filling is added.
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Chocolate and oranges
The combination of chocolate and oranges just screams Christmas, and these little chocolate orange tarts make the perfect dessert to serve after a huge meal.
Chocolate orange tarts are made with a buttery sweetcrust pastry which is blind-baked before being brushed with melted chocolate. Then they filled with my homemade orange curd and topped with whipped cream and a slice of Terry’s chocolate orange.
They are not too sweet, and the fruity tang of the orange curd filling makes a refreshing change from a stodgy steamed pudding. In addition the coating of chocolate on the pastry gives a satisfying ‘crunch’ as you bite through it, especially if you eat them fresh from the refrigerator.
I have to say they do look so festive.
I think you will love these chocolate orange tarts:
- The orange curd is sweet and fruity, with the texture of thick custard. And because they are served cold, these tarts make a refreshing ending to a meal.
- Brushing the pastry with chocolate helps prevent the pastry from becoming soggy, so you can easily keep them fresh for 3 or 4 days.
- The pastry has a rich buttery taste that goes so well with the orange curd and chocolate.
- The whipped cream topping provides the creamy element that we all love in a dessert.
- And of course, who doesn’t love a chocolatey flavour of a slice of chocolate orange!
Let me show you how to make them.
What you will need
**You can find the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making these orange tarts on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Equipment
For baking the tarts you will need 8 mini flan rings (4″ in diameter). I have a set of these and they are great – 100% non-stick and the removable bottoms make it easy to get the baked shells out of the tins.
I also used some ceramic baking beads and a roll of baking parchment to blind-bake the pastry. If you don’t have any you can use normal dried haricot beans instead.
Ingredients:
I haven’t taken a picture of the ingredients, because you hardly need anything.
Orange curd – you can find the recipe in my post on how to make orange curd. One quantity will be sufficient for 8 x 4″ diameter orange tarts.
Pastry – you will need one quantity of shortcrust pastry. You can use store-bought if you prefer, or you can use the pastry recipe from this blackberry and apple pie recipe.
Milk chocolate – which is used for brushing onto the pastry cases once they have been baked. I just used normal Cadbury’s milk chocolate which I melted in the microwave, but you could use good quality cooking chocolate instead if you’re worried about it not melting properly. 100 grams (about 3.5 ounces) will be more than sufficient to coat 8 pastry cases.
Whipped cream – this is just double / heavy / whipping cream, which you whisk until it forms stiff peaks. You won’t need much – just sufficient to put a spoonful on each tart. I used 100 ml – that’s a third of a tub or just under half a cup. I also don’t add sugar to the cream before whipping it – I think the orange curd is sweet enough. If you prefer a sweeter dessert, by all means add a little sugar to the cream.
Terry’s chocolate orange – you will need one segment per tart, and considering that there are 20 segments in one chocolate orange, there will be plenty left over for the chef to munch on.
What to do
This recipe makes 8 x 4″ chocolate orange tarts.
Make the pastry cases
Roll out the pastry to 1/8th of an inch thickness and use it to line your mini flan cases.
I used a small dish as a guide to cut the pastry to fit.
Prick the base of each pastry case with a fork.
Line each pastry case with a square of baking parchment, and fill the hollow with baking beans.
Transfer the flan cases to a baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated oven (200C/400F) for 15 minutes.
Remove the tray from the oven, then carefully lift out the baking parchment with the baking beans. Be careful – it will be hot.
Return the tray to the oven and bake for a further 5 to 7 minutes until the pastry cases are golden brown.
Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
Fill the tarts
Break the chocolate into little pieces and melt it in the microwave in 30-second blasts on full power.
Stir after each 30 seconds.
My chocolate took 3 x 30-second blasts to melt in a 900-watt microwave.
Using a silicone brush (or a flat knife) spread the chocolate in a thin layer on each pastry shell.
Leave for a few minutes to set.
Spoon the orange curd into each of the pastry shells.
Top with a spoonful of whipped cream and press a slice of chocolate orange on top.
Store these chocolate orange tarts on a plate in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap.
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Chocolate orange tart FAQ
I wouldn’t freeze the filled tarts, however you can make the pastry cases and freeze those in a rigid container (to prevent breakage) for up to 6 months.
Let them defrost and fill them when you need them.
If you don’t have a microwave, you can break the chocolate into pieces and put it in pyrex dish over a pan of simmering water.
Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted.
Take care not to let any water get into the chocolate or you will end up with a hard lumpy mess.
Save for later
If you would like to make these chocolate orange tarts, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily. Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Other recipes
You may also like to try one of these easy dessert recipes:
- Passion fruit cheesecake – a light and creamy dessert topped with tangy passion fruit
- Peppermint chocolate mousse – a creamy chocolate mousse flavoured with peppermint
- Puff pastry custard slices – crispy puff pastry sandwiched with creme patissiere
The recipe
Chocolate orange tarts
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- 8 Mini flan cases
- Baking beans
- Small bowl
Ingredients
- 1 quantity orange curd Get the recipe here – https://www.foodleclub.com/orange-curd/
- 1 quantity shortcrust pastry Get the recipe here – https://www.foodleclub.com/blackberry-and-apple-pie/
- 3½ ounces / 100 grams milk chocolate
- ½ cup / 100 ml double (heavy) cream whipped to stiff peaks
- 8 segments Terry's chocolate orange
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F
- Roll out the pastry to 1/8th of an inch thickness and use it to line your mini flan cases. I used a small dish as a guide to cut the pastry to fit.1 quantity shortcrust pastry
- Prick the base of each pastry case with a fork.
- Line each pastry case with a square of baking parchment, and fill the hollow with baking beans. Transfer the flan cases to a baking sheet.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes.Remove the tray from the oven, then carefully lift out the baking parchment with the baking beans. Be careful – it will be hot.
- Return the tray to the oven and bake for a further 5 to 7 minutes until the pastry cases are golden brown.Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
- Break the chocolate into little pieces and melt it in the microwave in 30-second blasts on full power.Stir after each 30 seconds.My chocolate took 3 x 30-second blasts to melt in a 900-watt microwave.3½ ounces / 100 grams milk chocolate
- Using a silicone brush (or a flat knife) spread the chocolate in a thin layer on each pastry shell.Leave for a few minutes to set.
- Spoon the orange curd into each of the pastry shells.1 quantity orange curd
- Top with a spoonful of whipped cream and press a slice of chocolate orange on top.½ cup / 100 ml double (heavy) cream, 8 segments Terry's chocolate orange
- Store these chocolate orange tarts on a plate in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap.
Notes
Let them defrost and fill them when you need them. If you don’t have a microwave, you can break the chocolate into pieces and put it in pyrex dish over a pan of simmering water.
Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted.
Take care not to let any water get into the chocolate or you will end up with a hard lumpy mess.
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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Can I replace heavy cream with milk if I don’t have it?
I’m afraid not – the cream has to be whipped to stiff peaks so that you can spoon it on top of the tarts. If you don’t have heavy cream you can just leave the cream off the top and decorate the tarts only with the chocolate orange.