Chocolate Mousse, Salted Caramel Ganache, Peanut and Banana Caramel Tarts

I hope you are enjoying this holiday weekend. For us, it has been a weekend of potty training, sourdough bread baking, grilling and torrential rains. I have not seen it rain so hard in a long time, but it was needed as our grass was starting to look a bit brown and lifeless.

I will leave the potty training stories for another time, as I know those of you who have done it, have your share of funny ones as well. I will have to tell you about our new sourdough culture soon. It has become our new family project now and are completely obsessed with it.

I made these chocolate tarts for our annual Memorial Day weekend block party. Surprisingly, the sun came out for us and we were able to set up a large tent right outside so everyone could come in and go. Lots of neighbors joined and the kids had a blast in the pool and the sprinklers we set up outside.

Everyone loved when I brought these tarts out. They are chocolate tart shells filled with a layer of banana caramel with peanuts, another layer of a triple chocolate salted caramel ganache and topped with chocolate mousse. Rich to say the least, but oh so good.

Chocolate Tart Dough

adapted from Johnny Iuzzini’s “Dessert Fourplay”

Note: you will only need part of the dough. Freeze the rest.

140 grams cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
150 grams sugar
pinch salt
1 egg
1 egg white
310 grams flour
50 grams cocoa powder
4 grams baking powder

Cream the butter, sugar and salt until light.

Mix the egg white and egg together and add it to the butter. Mix and scrape bowl well.

Add the sifted flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and mix until combined.

Divide the dough into two balls, flatten them into disks, wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple of hours before rolling.

Roll the dough into 1/8″ thickness and fill 3″ ring molds with it. Refrigerate the filled molds for at least an hour before blind baking.

Salted Peanut and Banana Caramel

100 grams sugar
40 grams glucose
50 grams butter
200 grams ripe bananas, mashed
50 grams salted peanuts, chopped

Make a dry caramel with the glucose and the sugar. Add the softened butter and whisk until it melts. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the mashed bananas. Transfer to a clean bowl and let this caramel cool.

We will add the salted peanuts when the banana caramel has cooled and right when we assemble the tarts.

Salted Caramel Ganache

25 grams bittersweet chocolate, chopped
50 grams unsweetened chocolate, chopped
75 grams milk chocolate, chopped
200 grams heavy cream
50 grams butter
10 grams glucose
105 grams sugar
large pinch of sea salt

Place the three types of chocolate in a large bowl. Place a large strainer over the bowl and reserve.

In a small pan, heat the heavy cream and butter and keep it warm.

In a separate tall pan, make a dry caramel with the glucose and sugar. Add the warm heavy cream and butter mixture slowly and whisk. The caramel will bubble up so stand away from the pan slightly and add it in stages if necessary. Whisk until all incorporated.

Pour this caramel over the chopped chocolate through the fine sieve. Add the sea salt and whisk until ganache is formed.

Be careful not to over whisk this ganache because it has a tendency to “break” if handled too much.

Chocolate Mousse

2 egg yolks
55 grams simple syrup
100 grams bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
205 grams heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

Place the egg yolks and the simple syrup in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk them together. Place this bowl over a double boiler and whisk the ingredients until light and foamy and thick. About 3-4 minutes.

Remove the bowl from the double boiler and place it in the machine. Whip the eggs until the bottom of the bowl feels cool to the touch.

Add the melted and cooled chocolate to the egg yolk mixture and whisk until combined. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl well.

Fold in the soft peak whipped cream and mix gently until all incorporated.

Assembling the Tarts

Blind bake the tart shells at 350F.

When tart shells are cooled, spoon a bit of the banana caramel into them. Top with the chopped peanuts.

Pour a thin layer of the salted caramel ganache into the tarts to cover the bottom layer. Refrigerate for a few minutes to set.

Place the chocolate mousse in a pastry bag fitted with a number 5 tip and pipe it on top of the set ganache.

Dust the tarts with a bit of cocoa powder, sprinkle with chopped peanuts and decorate with chocolate shavings.

They are best served slightly at room temperature so the ganache has a chance to soften a bit, so pull them out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before serving.


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109 Responses to “Chocolate Mousse, Salted Caramel Ganache, Peanut and Banana Caramel Tarts”

  1. Y says:

    Looks incredibly rich! .. but in the best way possible :)

  2. Gis says:

    oh my!!!
    this look so yummy!!
    and the photos are as always so eatable!!

  3. Hilda says:

    Aran may I ask how many tartlets this made? They look like they are 3″ circles is that right? I want to know because you may be the devil in disguise and I want to make these beauties as soon as my little one allows it. =) I look forward to potty training stories in future posts.

  4. Half Baked says:

    OMG this looks and sounds like the best dessert ever! Sinfully delicious:)

  5. Sounds like a busy and fun weekend! The tarts look soooo good! Beautiful!

  6. Wow, what a killer combo! These pretty tarts must taste extremely good! Fantastic photography, as always…

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  7. Bonnie says:

    OMG! I have just asked for this for my birthday dessert next week! Do you think it would translate to one large tart? If so, what size tart pan? And any other adjustments?

    Thanks for making my birthday!

  8. icicle says:

    Potty training going on here this weekend too — sure wish I had some lovely tarts to look forward to as well!

  9. Aran says:

    Bonnie- you can totally make this into a large tart. It will probably make a good 8″ or 9″ one. Hope you like it!

  10. Aran says:

    Hilda- sorry I skipped your comment. I always forget to add how many it makes. Yes, these are 3″ rings and I made 5 but had left over of everything so I think it can easily make about 8-3″ tarts. Hope you make them!

  11. Eralda LT says:

    Stunning! I bet they taste as good as they look.

  12. Tartelette says:

    Well, that sure makes up for all that bad weather, doesn’t it?!
    Now that’s flavor combo with a bang!
    P.S: tart shell recipe mising (or link to previous one)?

  13. Oh wow. That just sounds absolutely amazing and decadent. Stunning! I can see why your neighbors loved them.

  14. Aran says:

    Helen- Oops! Thank you for letting me know. I meant to include a link to a previous post, then realized in that post I didn’t have a recipe and then, forgot all about it. Where did my mind go? Thanks for reminding me!

    Thanks everyone!

  15. do i dare make this myself – i’m so tempted, but a bit overwhelmed!!
    xox

  16. Sugar Chef says:

    Looks Delish. Banana, caramel & chocolate together, wow is all I have to say.

  17. Alicia says:

    Aran,
    Could your timing be more perfect. Our local ice creamery makes an amazing salted caramel ice cream..in fact Sweet Republic made the new Bon Appetit & I was trying to think of a way to incorporate the notion to my mother’s to die for cheesecake recipe.
    Not only will I be doing your tarts but using the ganache as a layer in the cheesecake.
    As usual your recipe is by far the best I could find.
    Wonderful weekend for you & the family.

  18. Eliza says:

    Hi
    I love your blog!!! I’m a Brazilian culinary student and your blog was one of my inspirations for becoming a Chef! Have a great week.

    Eliza

  19. Austin says:

    Hello
    I adore your cooking and love your blog! All your creations look scrumptious that I just sit and drool at my computer screen! Keep the ideas flowing!

  20. Kaitlin says:

    Your photos are so amazing, and so is everything you create!

    I absolutely love your blog.

  21. Sunshinemom says:

    Thanks for an easy and impressive recipe! I will try this shortly for the kids.

  22. Lauren says:

    Is this part of Tartelette’s blog? I recognize her style. Gorgeous little tarts! Bet the combo of flavors is wonderful.

  23. I love salted caramel! These look so beautiful and so rich! I’m sure they went fast :)

  24. I would love to take these components and turn them into a cake…they look and sound DIVINE!

  25. Dominique says:

    Wonderful recipe and pictures! Chocolate and salted caramel: all what I prefer! I will cerainely try it, perhaps for mother’s day (june 7) . Thank you…

  26. Seanna Lea says:

    Wow. I’m really bad at plating, so I would probably make a batch of the caramel banana and incorporate it into a pudding or mousse recipe, topped with a touch of very lightly sweetened whipped cream. It is much easier for me to make a mousse-like dessert look good on a plate!

  27. Ria says:

    Amaaaaaaaaaazing Aran!! One doubt…Is glucose a white powder like substance? In India , glucose is recommened to consume when you are feeling tired and stuff.. just to be energised. Is it the same? Do I sound dumb? Must say I’m confused :)

  28. Juliana says:

    These look wonderful!! Is there a way to make the caramel without glucose? I’d love to make them!

  29. idu says:

    beti bezain ikusgarria, bai tartak, bai argazkiak. Neu ere ama orea egiteko saiakeran nabil,, aurrenekoa tenperatura freskoegiengatik ez nuen lortu. ez dago etxeko ogia bezalakorik!

  30. Aran says:

    Ria- glucose is similar to corn syrup. have you heard of corn syrup? you can also find atomized glucose which is in a powder form but I think it’s different that what you are referring to.

    Lauren- No, this is not part of Tartelette’s blog but we are friends.

    Juliana- the glucose is there so the caramel doesn’t crystalize so it has an important function plus it is such as small amount… About a Tbs for 8 tarts so minimal. You can try to omit it too but it really doe help in the recipe.

    Thanks everyone!

  31. Oh my, I think my “to bake” file is going to explode! This one’s moving to the top though. Bananas, peanuts, chocolate AND salted caramel ? Ok, I’m in !! :)

    Looking forward to reading about the sourdough adventures too !

  32. Esti says:

    Aran, el escenario que has pintado es de película… Me muero por tener días así…
    :)

  33. linda says:

    Banana caramel…yum!

  34. The cake looks so perfect, each part perfectly contained. You are truly an amazing baker!
    I wish I had skills like that

  35. Ash says:

    Chocolatly rich goodness… The best!!
    Great stuff!

  36. Marta says:

    I wish I lived in your block :(
    Hahaha well, maybe that would be abd for you because you would have had to retrain me from eating every single last tart!
    Enjoy sourdough!
    Thanks Aran

  37. Inés says:

    Aran hil baino lehen halako zeozer egiteko kapaza banintz guztiz lasai joango nintzateke mundu honetatik. Gogoratzen duzu: Siento dejar este mundo sin haber probado a Facundo?. Bueno pipak ziren baina…nire bertsioa da. Facundo adjetibo ederra da halere.

  38. Me! says:

    that looks wonderfully decadent.

  39. rob says:

    glucose, would that be the same as corn syrup?

  40. Cakebrain says:

    ahhh. potty training. sigh. I’ll be potty training my little one this summer. You see, summer’s the only time I’m willing to do it. It just seems so much easier when there are fewer clothes to contend with! Your neighbours are so lucky to have you making them these tarts for the block party! What a gorgeous dessert!

  41. Chanterelle says:

    Gasp — I don’t even LIKE this combination and I’m all ready to make these! Your creations are always amazing.

  42. oh these look so good! simply stunning!

  43. anna says:

    So beautiful! Salted caramel, chocolate, banana, peanut…yum!

  44. Roberto N. says:

    There’s just no way those could taste anything but delicious. If I make that, I’d have to keep myself away

  45. Maybe says:

    Beautiful and mouth-watering : i want one !

  46. Thip says:

    Beautiful, clean and crisp, Aran. :)

  47. Gooberngrape says:

    the depth of field looks so luxurious in your photos, lovely.

    i was wondering if you could speak to your use of simple syrup instead of granulated sugar as you whip the eggs for the mousse? does the water in the syrup lighten the end result?
    i’m curious to know how/if i could use this technique in the future.
    thank you!
    –Bryan

  48. Dajda says:

    Thank you so much for this loveliness! I’ll definitely try out the recipe sometime in autumn when my chocolate craving comes back. :)

  49. Aran says:

    Rob- chemically speaking, glucose and corn syrup are made from different starches and have a slightly different composition. but you can certainly use corn syrup in place of glucose.

    Bryan- this is almost a different way of making a pate a bombe although it will not become as thick. in a larger batch, i would have boiled the simple syrup and poured it over the egg yolks while whipping but because this is such a small recipe, boiling the simple syrup would and adding it to the egg yolks in a stream would have been a bit difficult and would lose some of the amounts in the process. I decided to heat the egg yolks in the double boiler and then whip them. This really adds a lot of volume.

    Thank you everyone!

  50. Bridget says:

    Your neighbors must LOVE you!!!

  51. Sarah says:

    Officially happy I opened up my laptop today – it looks gorgeous but so hard to do! I’ll have to muster up the courage for it though – it sure looks worth it!

  52. Jessy says:

    Ahhhh, I’m generally a lurker, but this had me dying! Looks amazing, definatelly starred for another, more adventurous day!!!

  53. Anonymous says:

    How beautiful. Attractive and should be a delight, very delicate, parabenssss

  54. vanille says:

    Lucky neighbours !!!
    Looks so delicious !

  55. Ria says:

    Thanks Aran for replying to my query!! I have heard of corn syrup, but never seen it around,so it is usually substituted with honey :) I hope that’s okay! :)

  56. these look so delicious aran…and good luck with the potty training of course…!

  57. Lazy baker says:

    Aran,
    excited to hear your baking sourdough, I used your tart dough recipe and pastry cream for some different dinners, fabulous!

    Can’t wait to see your breads taking shape, happy baking!
    Jeremy

  58. hanna says:

    sieh superlecker aus

  59. Gaia says:

    every time i look at your pics and read your blog the ony thing I’d like is to give up everything and dedicate my life towhat I really like trying to transform a passion in a job …Life is only one we have to try to live it at the maximum!
    I’ll continue to follow you …Thanks for the inspirations…

  60. Ria says:

    Can you also please tell me how to make simple syrup… as in the proportions. I’m sorry to bother you with my questions…I’m planning to make a bigger tart with this for my parent’s wedding anniversary :) Thank you so much Aran!!

  61. Aran says:

    Ria- no silly question at all. I should have indicated that in the recipe. Simple syrup is equal parts of water and sugar that are heated until the sugar dissolves. So you can make a larger batch and measure out what you need for the recipe and use the rest for sorbets or drinks, etc.

    Thank you!

  62. veron says:

    Looks fantastic! Love chocolate and banana!

  63. zoe says:

    Superb! Your neighbors must wait outside your door everyday for your treats!

  64. Ria says:

    The reply was so quick !! U r a star!!! :)Just can’t wait to make it!!

  65. Rachel says:

    beautiful photograph as always! Good luck to you on the potty training endeavor. I’ve done it 3 times now. Good times.

  66. Anonymous says:

    you,re the best. Your family, your friends and all the people near you think and feel thar you are veru special.
    We love you
    Bego

  67. cindy* says:

    rich is right! these look fantastic aran!

    good luck with the potty training by the way! fun times…

  68. foodcreate says:

    Very tasteful! love this Recipe.
    Thanks for sharing:)

    and you can visit me if i can visit you:)

    Welcome:D
    http://www.foodcreate.com

  69. Oh my gosh, what a grand combination. Beautiful and all the right textures. I love bananas. And caramel. And peanuts. And chocolate!

    Can’t wait to hear about your sourdough. I’ve been making breads lately and it is just so soothing.

  70. Your neighbors are very lucky. I was thinking about the banana caramel with peanuts all day.

  71. this sounds so good with all the different flavors!

  72. Ooooh, I just know your blog is going to be so bad for my waistline, and so good for my overall happiness. Can’t wait to try this!

  73. Aran,

    How many tarts did you make for your block party?

    Brandy

  74. Aran says:

    Brandy- I only made about 8 of these individual ones and then cookies for the kids and it was plenty. people were actually splitting the tarts because they were so rich.

    Thanks everyone!

  75. PheMom says:

    Oh, how badly I wish I lived on your block! Seriously though, I think you just nailed all my most favorite things in one dessert!

  76. chefectomy says:

    My birthday is next week. Please make and send :)

    –Marc

  77. ChichaJo says:

    This looks absolutely gorgeous! And even better, totally delicious – caramel, chocolate, bananas…so much goodness in such a pretty package!

  78. Keith says:

    That looks delicious. This is my first time visiting your blog. I really like it. Have a great weekend.

  79. Elizabeth says:

    Swoon… You had me at “salted caramel ganache!” :)

  80. ladyironchef says:

    this looks super complicated, it got like all the best in, chocolate, salted carmel and peanut! great job :)

  81. sweetakery says:

    Ohh wow!! just love it! looks soo yummy just cant grab it!

  82. Bret says:

    These tarts look absolutely divine. I’ve got the make them. Thanks for sharing.

  83. eli says:

    These look great. I’ve been following your blog for a while, but have always been a bit intimidated by the complexity of your recipes. As soon as I saw these I knew I had to try them.

    I tried making a single 9″ tart, but I had some problems with the tart dough, so I ended up making a peanut cake and layering it with banana caramel and mousse, then whipping the ganache for frosting. It turned out really well. Thanks!

  84. Aran says:

    Eli- the dough gets very soft quickly. Did you have trouble because of that? Was it cracking? It’s so delicate… For next time, Roll it between 2 sheets of parchment and transfer it to the fridge right after. When a bit hard agin, peel off paper and then fill the tart mold. It’s tricky for larger ones. And if it cracks, you can definitely press it together.

    Thanks!

  85. Aran says:

    Eli- the dough gets very soft quickly. Did you have trouble because of that? Was it cracking? It’s so delicate… For next time, Roll it between 2 sheets of parchment and transfer it to the fridge right after. When a bit hard agin, peel off paper and then fill the tart mold. It’s tricky for larger ones. And if it cracks, you can definitely press it together.

    Thanks!

  86. I love how they look like mini Big Macs. Intrigued by the idea of making buttercream without boiling syrup… certainly a lot less fiddly.

  87. diva says:

    that totally looks like my kinda pudding. gorgeous and with all the best ingredients!

  88. Look so good. So amazingly and perfectly assembled. My hand are not gracious enough to pull one of those off. My mouth is animal enough to eat it in one bite!

  89. Ria says:

    Aran, I made it and it’s up on my blog!! :) I made it last month but posted it really late :)

  90. sílvia says:

    wow. i’m speechless. breathless. i want it now!!! congratulations ;)

  91. Anonymous says:

    ARAN. How are you? I have discovered your blog some months ago and it is really something!!! Congratulations! Today I made these chocolate mousse tarts and they were amazing! Although I had a problem and I wish you could help me!! The chocolate mousse I made was very soft..liquid.. I don´t know what I did wrong…was it because I didnt whip the cream as much as needed???? Thank you very much!!!
    Denise.

  92. Aran says:

    Denise- I’m sorry that happened. It’s most likely because the cream was too soft. In any case, if that happens again, you could put it in the fridge and let it harden a bit before piping. The chocolate will solidify in the fridge with the cold and that should set it somewhat even if it’s soft. Did you try doing that?

  93. Anonymous says:

    ARAN. Thank you very much fpr your quick answer!! I did not try that, but I will the next time. I´m doing the tarts again for sure.
    Thanks!
    Denise.
    ps: I´m sorry for any horrible grammar mistake. English is not my first language.

  94. ABowlOfMush says:

    I love anything with salted caramel! I just made salted caramel custard pots and now I want these! They look delicious!

  95. Sarah says:

    I would love to try this! You don’t happen to have an easy way to convert to imperial measurements, do you? I should probably get a kitchen scale, but my poor tiny apartment can’t take one more gadget.

    Thanks very much for your delicious photos!

  96. Aran says:

    Sarah- here is a conversion calculator http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/gram_calc.htm
    I have never tried it myself so I can’t tell you the accuracy but you could try.

    thanks!

    Aran

  97. Aran, I made these this weekend and only encountered one snag. When I added the melted chocolate to the yolk / sugar syrup mixture, everything solidified. It basically turned solid and pasty – I just beat in some heavy cream before folding in the whipped cream, but have you ever had that happen? Or know why it did? (Not that it affected the taste – these were amazing!)

  98. Aran says:

    EngineerBaker- That is not unusual. If your egg yolks are cool and so is the chocolate then the chocolate will seize up fast when it touches the cold yolks. It is all about tempering. In that case, you could add some of the soft peak cream to the base, like you said. Always easy that way. Glad you liked it!

    Aran

  99. Phew, good to know! Thanks so much for the quick response!

  100. Heey look, it’s been a year and I am back again :) Just wanted to say thank you one more time, we’ve gotten together with our church ladies and baked these, even though it’s a long process the end result is well worth the effort! They’re delicious, thank you for the recipe!

  101. Andrea Meyer says:

    I may have missed it but could you tell me what the yield is for this recipe? Thanks!

  102. Anita Romano says:

    Can you please tell me what blind baking means?

    • Aran says:

      Hi,

      Blind baking means to pre-bake a crust. So essentially cover the raw dough with parchment, top with pie weights or dry beans. Bake at 375F for about 20 minutes. Then remove pie weights and parchment and proceed with the recipe. Hope that makes sense. Thanks.

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