Preparation for the Cocoa Tart with Cream

• To prepare the tart, start with the cocoa shortcrust pastry.
  In a stand mixer, food processor, or manually in a bowl, work the softened butter with sugar, add the beaten eggs, vanilla, and while mixing, add the sifted flour and cocoa. Quickly work the dough at speed 2-3 until it becomes compact.
  Transfer the dough onto a pastry board, compact it well with your hands, then wrap it in a sheet of plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for 20 – 30 minutes.

• CUSTARD CREAM

  Meanwhile, while the pastry rests, prepare the custard cream.
  I prepared it with the Kenwood cooking chef, I placed the beaten eggs with sugar in the container, then the flour and a bit of milk, mixed well at speed 2, added the rest of the milk, vanilla, and butter, brought it to 248°F and while in action, cooked the cream for about 5 minutes then lowered the temperature to 194°F and continued cooking until it thickened, for another 5 minutes or so.
  You can do the same process with the Bimby or in a saucepan on the stovetop.

• Stovetop cream cooking:
  Heat 1 2/3 cups of milk in a saucepan over low heat (set aside the remaining 50 ml). Separately, beat the egg yolks with sugar until you obtain a yellow and frothy mixture. Then add the flour or cornstarch and the 50 ml of milk set aside, mix everything well. Pour the whole mixture into the saucepan, including butter and vanilla aroma (the milk should not be boiling but well hot), stir continuously using a kitchen whisk until it thickens and you get your cream. PLEASE NOTE: as soon as the cream starts to boil, remove immediately from the heat, excessive heat gives the cream a strong egg smell.
  Pour the cream into a container (choose ceramic or glass bowls, not plastic), cover with food wrap to prevent a skin from forming on the surface, and let it cool in the fridge.

• BAKING SHORTCRUST PASTRY

  Now proceed with the baking of the cocoa shortcrust pastry, take the dough from the fridge, roll it out on a piece of parchment paper with the help of a rolling pin, then place it in a 12 inches diameter mold, trim the excess edges, prick the bottom with a fork, then press the edges with your fingers for a wavy effect.
  Place a piece of parchment paper on the pastry base and place some legumes for weight or, as I did, insert another slightly smaller pan for blind baking.
  Bake the shortcrust pastry in a preheated oven at 356°F for about 15 minutes, then remove the pan or legumes, depending on what you used, and continue baking for another 10 minutes at 338°F. Once cooked, remove from the oven and let it cool completely.

  

• DIPLOMATIC CREAM
  
  Proceed with the diplomatic cream, usually, it’s made with equal amounts of cream and custard, I used slightly less cream.
  In a well-chilled bowl, whip the cold cream with an electric whisk until it becomes firm. Blend the cream with upward movements to the already cold custard, mix until it becomes well homogeneous.

• Preparation of the tart with cream and fruit.
  Take the cocoa shortcrust shell, melt the white chocolate in a small bowl, then brush the base, and cool it for 5 minutes in the fridge, this is to prevent the pastry from softening, but you can skip this step, as the pastry remained very hard and compact since it doesn’t contain yeast.
  Pour the diplomatic cream inside the shortcrust shell, level it well with a spatula, wash and dry the fruit and decorate as desired, also adding some mint leaves.

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