Dulcey Chocolate, Tonka Whipped Cream and Caramelized Hazelnut Tart

Toast the hazelnuts in a preheated oven at 150°C / 300°F for about ten minutes. Once out of the oven, let the hazelnuts cool then rub them to remove the skins.

Chop the hazelnuts into small pieces (not too small though).

Once golden, add the butter and fleur de sel and mix well. Transfer to a surface lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

Let cool and store in a dry place.

Put the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook to 118°C / 244°F. Check the temperature with a thermometer. If you don't have one, simply watch for small bubbles to appear.

Remove from heat, pour the chopped hazelnuts into the sugar syrup and stir well until they are coated in a kind of white sand.

Return the saucepan to medium heat. Stir constantly as soon as the sugar starts to dissolve. The hazelnuts will caramelize gradually (be careful not to burn them).

You'll have quite a bit left over, but it's not always easy to make this kind of recipe in small quantities. You can either reduce the proportions or snack on the rest =)

Place the softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and incorporate the sugar. Add the egg, then the sifted flour and salt, and knead briefly until a ball forms.

Wrap the dough in cling film and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using.

Preheat the oven to 170°C / 340°F.

Roll out the dough to 2–3 mm thickness with a rolling pin. Lightly prick the dough with a fork and cut out a circle slightly larger than your tart ring.

Place the dough in the ring (the fork holes should be facing down).

A few tips for lining a tart ring: bring the dough inside the ring, and using your index finger, create a right angle all around the dough. Form a slight ridge on the inside, run the rolling pin over the dough and remove the excess. Create a nice raised edge by pinching the dough (video instructions available).

Place parchment paper on the base of the tart and add ceramic baking beads or dried beans, then bake for 15 minutes. Let cool.

Once the tart shell is baked and cooled, use a microplane grater to smooth out any imperfections.

Break the Dulcey chocolate into pieces in a bowl and melt it in a double boiler or microwave.

Heat the cream and invert sugar (or honey) in a saucepan. As soon as the cream simmers, pour one third over the chocolate and mix with a spatula to create an emulsion. Then add a second third, then a third, to obtain a smooth, homogeneous mixture.

Blend with an immersion blender until the ganache is perfectly smooth, taking care not to incorporate air bubbles.

Pour the Dulcey ganache over the tart shell and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Place the bowl and whisk attachments of the electric mixer in the freezer for at least 15 minutes.

Pour the cream and mascarpone into the bowl and start whisking at medium speed, then as the cream begins to firm up a little, increase the speed. Gradually, the cream will start to rise and firm up.

Check the consistency of your cream from time to time by stopping the mixer. It is ready when it is completely set — if you turn the bowl upside down, it should not fall. Be careful not to over-whip the cream or you risk making butter. Know when to stop.

Don't forget to add the icing sugar and grated tonka bean when the cream is almost fully whipped.

Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a smooth 15 mm nozzle and refrigerate until assembly.

Retrieve the tart shell from the refrigerator.

Pipe small balls of tonka bean whipped cream all around the edge of the tart.

Scatter pieces of caramelized hazelnuts over the top.

Refrigerate until ready to serve (I recommend taking the tart out 15 minutes before to allow the ganache to soften slightly).