Chocolate Raspberry Tarts

Often times, recipes that involve the melting of chocolate call for the use of a double boiler. Well guess what people? I don’t have a double boiler, so how did I melt the chocolate in this recipe? As a go to technique for melting chocolate, I use a glass or metal bowl on top of a saucepan of boiling water. Just be super careful of the steam when doing this, I often wear an oven glove on the hand holding the bowl. If you choose to use this method try to avoid creating a complete seal between the pot and the bowl. This creates a buildup of pressure and you might get a nasty surprise when the bowl jumps off the pot when the pressure overcomes the seal. Always be mindful that the bowl is being heated by the hot water underneath and will tend to heat up especially so if a metal bowl is being used. Most of the time I use a metal bowl because I find it easier to handle compared to glass due to it being a lighter weight. The downside to this, is I need to be extra careful and constantly assume that the bowl is not safe to touch as metal does tend to transfer heat very quickly.

An alternative way to melt chocolate that avoids any sort of double boilder arrangement is to use a microwave. In this method, the idea is to microwave the chocolate in stints of no more than 20 seconds at a time (often much less once heated through), stirring in between each stint. Try to be patient and keep to the ‘no more than 20 seconds at a time’ instruction because too long and the chocolate can burnt or get overcooked. Microwaves tend to cook an object unevenly so hence the need to stir between each burst in the microwave ake sure teh chooclate is melted evenly.

Make sure you start whizzing the filling mixture as soon as the melted chocolate has been added because the chocolate will start cooling and solidifying as soon as you add it. The aim is to achieve a nice, smooth and consistent tart filling that is deliciously rich but well balanced by the raspberry jelly on top.

Please do not be tempted to use any tofu you have on hand. Only use silken tofu. Actually, to be honest, I say only use silken tofu but say so without having had tried non silken tofu in this recipe. I imagine the filling would not be as smooth but would probably still taste good.

I used agar agar powder. Feel free to substitute with geletine if you are not sure about agar or have no vegan or vegetarian dietary requirements. Just quickly and for your information, agar is seaweed and is commonly associated with the jelly they put in petridishes that scientists use to put samples on and grow bacteria, fungi or other friendly (and not so friendly) bugs. However, being cantonese, my mum showed me how it can be as a food product or ingredient, particularly in making jellies. I personally think agar is wonderful. A little goes a long way, compared to geletine, you need much less agar powder to get the same jelly jiggle (!) or the same consistency when set. I also love how it sets at room temperature, which is particularly handy when cooking up a storm and have many things on the go but have limited fridge space to work with. In such cases, I am happy to just leave the jelly covered and sitting on a free bench or table or even setup on the serving table to set. What a space saver!