Chocolate Pecan Tart

This is a sumptuous Chocolate Pecan Tart, perfect for a special event or any day you want an easy and delicious dessert.

I was asked some time ago if I would like to feature a recipe from Chef François Payard . Not that I am alone in that invitation I'm sure but when a recipe that is not in one of Chef Payard's books is offered to me, I feel both honored and certainly intrigued. That was the case with this Chocolate Pecan Tart.

I'm not a baking blog or a chocolate blog but more of an 'all things blog' certainly with an emphasis on cocktails but I'm always game; his recipes have never failed me and I loved the sound of this Chocolate Pecan Tart; even if I set it aside and forgot about it!

That being said, this recipe was a bit confounding and when you say that about a recipe from a master you sort of scrunch into your seat and wait for the angels to come visit you and set your head straight. But it's true and as a result I had to make some big revisions.

I first made it several weeks ago during the Christmas holidays after I was invited to join some friends for dinner. The plan was to make a tart, take some photos and then carry my goodies with me to their house. It all happened save for the photos; I simply ran out of time.

The response to the dessert was so positive that I thought it worth doing again, making sure to right the snafu I ran into, and sharing here in time for Valentine's Day.

And what was that snafu? WAY too much filling. As in double what is required. This time around I decided to make individual Chocolate Pecan Tarts for Valentine's Day and had the opportunity to measure exactly how much of the liquid filling I needed and it was literally half the amount that this recipe makes. That is a LOT of extra filling.

So, do I recommend that you cut the amounts in half or that you make two Chocolate Pecan Tarts? Both? I opted for the first choice; this is a rich and wonderful treat but I didn't more than one of them; if you're serving a crowd then do two.

Although I baked this recipe as tarts so I could give them to my neighbors, I've kept the recipe written for a single larger Chocolate Pecan Tart thinking that most of my readers would find that preferable. Heck, I had to spend a half hour figuring out where I had stored the little tart baking forms!

Do you love my little heart decorations? If you want to make these for Valentine's Day, they're simply some scrap pie dough. I cut out little circles; flattened them a bit to be oblong, notched an edge for the top and then trimmed a bit off each side at the bottom before using my fingers to round off the edges and make an exaggerated point at the bottom.

Brush with milk and top with red decorating sugar, bake for a couple of minutes in the oven and you've got hearts to decorate your tart with if you want to make this for Valentine's Day. Easy as, well, pie! Serve this Chocolate Pecan Tart with some nice port; it makes a beautiful dessert for your Valentine or if not partnered; remember to love yourself and make one anyhow!