Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart

I’m making probably, arguably, one of the best desserts—slash puddings—in the whole wide world. I’m making a Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart.

Who doesn’t love chocolate and salted caramel, and a chocolate pastry crust as well? We start off with that crisp pastry crust on the bottom, then a big layer of salted caramel, and on top of that, we do a silky chocolate ganache. At the end, it looks like a grown-up Twix bar. Seriously!

Why You’ll Love This

• It’s a Showstopper: It looks incredibly professional—like something from a Parisian bakery—but it’s actually quite manageable at home.
• The “Grown-Up Twix” Vibe: You get that crunch from the biscuit, the chew from the caramel, and the snap of the chocolate. It hits every texture.
• Versatile: I’m making the classic dark chocolate version, but if you’re making this for the family and the kids prefer milk or white chocolate, you can easily switch it up.

What You’ll Need

Special Equipment/Instruments:

• 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom (loose bottom)
• Food processor
• Rolling pin
• Pie weights or dried beans (for blind baking)
• Heavy-bottomed saucepan (vital for the caramel)
• Pastry brush (optional)

Ingredients:

For the Chocolate Sweet Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte Sablée):

• 1 ¼ cups plus 2 tbsp (170g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp (20g) Dutch-process cocoa powder (replaces part of the standard flour amount)
• ½ cup (60g) powdered sugar (icing sugar)
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup (115g) unsalted butter, cubed (room temp for blending, but cold is often better for texture—script uses room temp)
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Salted Caramel Layer:

• 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
• ¼ cup (60ml) water
• ¼ cup (60ml) light corn syrup
• ½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
• 4 tbsp (55g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tsp flaky sea salt (plus extra for garnish)

For the Chocolate Ganache:

• 4 oz (115g) bittersweet chocolate (60–70% cocoa), finely chopped (or high-quality chips)
• ½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
• Pinch of sea salt

Let’s Get Baking!

1. The Easiest Chocolate Pastry Ever

First of all, make the pastry. And that’s really easy. All the ingredients go into the food processor. So toss in the flour, the butter (softened to room temperature), some cocoa powder, powdered sugar, a little vanilla, and an egg. Pop the lid on and just pulse away. How easy is that?

Tip: Depending on how soft your butter was, your paste could be really, really soft. If it is, wrap it in parchment paper and pop it in the fridge to harden up just for a little while, otherwise, you won’t be able to roll it out.

2. The Blind Bake

We want to bake the crust until the pastry is nice and dry. If we put it in the oven as is, the sides will just collapse. So, what we have to do is blind bake it.

Put a piece of parchment paper in the bottom of your rolled-out tart shell and fill it with baking beans or pie weights. Push them right into corners because that’s really important to hold the shape.

It goes into the oven at 350°F (175°C). After about 15 minutes, lift out the beans and give it another 10 minutes to dry out the base. You’ll see it turn a matte brown color—that means it’s cooked nicely.

3. Making the Salted Caramel (Careful Now!)

While the tart cools, make the salted caramel sauce. Put sugar, water, and corn syrup into a pan and let it boil away.
Crucial Rule: Do not stir it! Just give it a little shake every now and again until it goes a beautiful amber color. Don’t be tempted to put a whisk in there, because that causes the sugar to crystallize and you get these crunchy bits, which is not nice at all. And definitely don’t stick your finger in!

Once it’s amber, add the cream and butter. Be careful, because it will bubble up violently. Stir until smooth, add the sea salt, and pour it into the tart shell. We have to let this cool completely for several hours so it’s nice and firm.

4. The Ganache

If you just put melted chocolate over the top, it would be so firm you won’t cut through it. So, we make a ganache with hot cream and chocolate. Whisk it until it’s thin and silky creamy, then pour it over the set caramel.

5. The Finish

To finish, and to make it a real salted caramel tart, take a little Maldon sea salt flakes—the best from England—and sprinkle just a few on top.

6. Serve

Leave it out for about an hour before serving so the caramel softens up. If you leave it too long, it might run like melted Brie, but catch it at the right moment and it is absolute perfection. Enjoy!

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Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart (The “Grown-Up Twix”)

Recipe by Sana ReiCourse: Dessert / PuddingCuisine: French / BritishDifficulty: Intermediate

Servings

8-10

slices

Prep time

45

minutes

Cooking time

30

minutes

Calories

480

kcal

Chill time

180

minutes

Total time

4

hours 

15

minutes

A decadent dessert featuring a crisp chocolate Pâte Sablée crust, a thick layer of chewy salted caramel, and a silky bittersweet chocolate ganache topping. Finished with Maldon sea salt flakes.

Ingredients

• Equipment Needed:

• Food processor

• 9-inch tart tin (removable bottom)

• Pie weights/dried beans

• Heavy saucepan

• Ingredients:

• Pastry:

• 170g (1 ¼ cups + 2 tbsp) All-purpose flour

• 20g (2 tbsp) Cocoa powder

• 60g (½ cup) Powdered sugar

• ¼ tsp Salt

• 115g (½ cup) Unsalted butter

• 1 Egg yolk

• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

• Caramel:

• 200g (1 cup) Granulated sugar

• 60ml (¼ cup) Water

• 60ml (¼ cup) Light corn syrup

• 120ml (½ cup) Heavy cream

• 55g (4 tbsp) Unsalted butter

• 1 tsp Flaky sea salt

• Ganache:

• 115g (4 oz) Bittersweet chocolate, chopped

• 120ml (½ cup) Heavy cream

• Pinch of sea salt

• Garnish:

• Maldon sea salt flakes

Directions

• Make the Dough: In a food processor, pulse flour, cocoa, powdered sugar, and salt. Add butter, egg yolk, and vanilla. Pulse until the dough clumps together.
• Chill: Form dough into a disc, wrap in parchment/plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes until firm enough to roll.
• Roll & Line: On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness. Lift carefully into a 9-inch tart pan. Press into the corners. Trim excess dough by rolling the pin over the top edges. Prick the bottom with a fork and freeze for 15 minutes.
• Blind Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line the tart shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights/beans. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove weights/paper and bake for another 10–12 minutes until the base is matte and dry. Cool completely.
• Make Caramel: In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar, water, and corn syrup. Boil over medium-high heat without stirring (swirl the pan occasionally) until deep amber (approx. 8-10 mins).
• Finish Caramel: Remove from heat. Carefully whisk in heavy cream (caution: steam!) and butter until smooth. Stir in the salt. Pour into the cooled tart shell. Let set at room temperature for at least 1 hour until firm.
• Make Ganache: Place chopped chocolate in a bowl. Bring 1/2 cup cream to a simmer, then pour over chocolate. Let sit 5 minutes, then whisk gently until glossy.
• Assemble: Pour ganache over the set caramel layer. Smooth the top.
• Set & Serve: Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Bring out 1 hour before serving to soften slightly. Sprinkle with Maldon salt flakes right before cutting.

Notes

• Don’t Stir: Never use a whisk while the sugar is boiling for the caramel; it causes crystallization (grainy caramel). Swirl the pan instead.
  
• Shortcuts: Not up for making pastry? You can use a store-bought pie crust or make a biscuit base using graham crumbs or digestives (cheesecake style).
  
• Kid-Friendly: Swap the dark chocolate ganache for milk or white chocolate, and top with M&M’s instead of sea salt.
  
• Leftover Dough: Don’t waste the scraps! Roll them out and bake them as little chocolate cookies.
  
• Storage: Keeps in the fridge for 3 days. Always bring to room temperature before eating so the caramel isn’t rock hard.