ArcaMax

We think you will enjoy this previously published Zola Classic!

Do you live to eat? Or do you eat to live?

Chocolate crusted peanut butter tart

Isn’t it interesting how babies that came out of the same womb can be so different from each other?

Take my husband and his brother for instance. There are only two kids in that family. My husband and his brother. No sisters. No other brother. Just them.

Two men could hardly be more different; especially when it comes to food.

My husband and I just go back from a vacation. We went to two very special inns on the east coast. We stayed a few days in each place. One is called Winvian and the other is called Blantyre. Winvian is in Connecticut and Blantyre is in Massachusetts. Neither of them is located in an area that is very exciting. What is exciting are the inns. Check them out on line if you want to see what they look like.

Every person has a variety of criteria for choosing vacation locations. Our criteria include: nice accommodations with great beds, a beautiful spa bathroom, a separate sitting area so my husband can get up early and read while I sleep, a quiet, relaxing setting; something rural or with special appeal, a fabulous chef and an amazing wine list.

Winvian and Blantyre score high marks in all categories. I research these things pretty thoroughly before I book any reservations. I check their websites. I look at the rooms on line. (These are smaller inns so you can actually pick the exact room you are going to stay in).

I look at the menus for the inn’s restaurant(s). We don’t plan to eat outside of the hotel for dinner. The dinner is a main attraction. We research the reputation and experience of the chef. The menu I review might not be the exact one they will be offering that night. In fact, these places cook with local ingredients, things from their garden and special order items so it’s likely that they will have a different menu every night. I just want to get an idea of the style and depth of the menu.

I look to see how deep the wine list is too. We will be picky about lining up the wine we choose to the food we order.

It’s all an orchestrated dance we do. And we will likely never repeat the same inn twice. It’s a goal to see the world one special inn at a time.

Now, take my husband’s brother.

He has vacationed for decades in the same place. The family goes to the beach and he goes golfing. They don’t care a lot about what they eat. My husband’s brother is the one who cannot understand why at breakfast my husband might be inquiring about dinner. It makes no sense to a guy who only eats because he has to fuel his body. And his favorite dinner is pizza. Oh yeah, and he drinks beer; any beer. Cheap beer will do. That’s my husband’s brother.

Does that make one lifestyle better than the other? No it does not.

Does that make the brothers dislike each other? No. And I love my sister-in-law too. We are just very different couples.

They might not understand our proclivity toward fabulous inns for our vacations but to each his own.

These brothers came out of the same womb for sure. But will you catch those guys at the same location for vacation? Probably never.

I married a foodie. And thank goodness since I’m a food writer! Our anniversary is this month. Twenty-nine years will be celebrated soon. And you can bet it will be at a fabulous restaurant, with an amazing menu, and an award-winning wine list.

For today’s recipe I am offering up my latest low carb dessert. It’s not totally devoid of calories, for sure, and it’s not truly LOW carb but if you saw how much sugar was in my inspiration recipe you’d be totally blown away.

Chocolate crusted peanut butter tart

I recently devised this fabulously divine peanut butter tart so maybe you’ll want to whip one up. It’s light, creamy, rich and perfect for family and friends. Easy too! When special occasions come up (like birthdays) don’t think cake. Think this!

Servings:
8 servings or more. This is really rich so instead of a piece that’s 3 inches wide at the back, 1.5 inches is probably enough.

Ingredients:

For the crust:
2 cups of chocolate cookie crumbs (You can use Famous chocolate cookies or there are organic cookie options too that are just chocolate wafers). You just whiz them in the food processor or put them in a large baggie and crush them with your rolling pin.
1/2 cup of melted butter

For the bottom layer:
4 oz of bittersweet chocolate diced (65 percent cacao or up to 85 percent. The higher the number, the deeper the chocolate flavor, and less sweet)
3 oz of whipping cream

For the peanut butter layer:
8 oz of cream cheese (softened)
1/4 cup of Truvia
1 cup of smooth peanut butter
3 cups of whipped topping or cream. You can whip your own cream and sweeten with 2 tsp. of Truvia and 2 tsp of vanilla. Make 3 cups of finished cream. OR you can buy Truwhip. This is like Cool Whip but it’s made with Truvia. It does have other natural sweeteners in it. At ZReboot 3.5 your liver can handle some sugar like this. Just don’t overdo it.
Optional top decoration
4 oz of bittersweet chocolate (65 percent cacao or up to 85 percent)
3 oz of whipping cream

Instructions:

You’ll need a 9-inch tart pan with removable sides. I use a cheesecake pan so the outside edge is smooth. Combine the cookie crumbs, and melted butter in a bowl. Mix with a fork until the crumbs are all wet with butter. Pour this mixture into the bottom of the tart pan and flatten it with your fingers. Gather some of the crumbs up along this sides and press them firmly to you make a 1-inch (or so) rim on your tart. Make room for the tart pan in your freezer and put it in there for 15 minutes to harden it.

While the tart pan is in the freezer, make your bottom layer. In a small sauce pan, carefully, and slowly melt the chocolate and cream. Stir constantly. This will only take a couple of minutes on medium low. Even before the chocolate is fully melted take it off the heat. The heat of the pan and the hot cream will continue to melt the chocolate.

If people make a mistake here, it’s keeping the pan on the heat too long and your chocolate will overcook and stick to the bottom of the pan or become grainy. Take the tart crust out of the freezer and spread this layer over the crust bottom. Don’t try to get it up the sides. That’s not necessary. Return the pan to the freezer for up to 15 minutes more; or until the chocolate has hardened. While this is happening make your peanut butter filling. In a bowl beat the cream cheese, Truvia and peanut butter until fluffy. Add the whipped topping and beat just until mixed. Take the tart out of the freezer and spread the peanut butter mixture on top.

Smooth the top with a spatula and lightly cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator. You can do this a day ahead of serving or chill for at least three hours. On the day you’ll serve it, remove plastic wrap and take a very sharp knife and carefully work it around the rim of the tart. You need to do this to loosen the sides of the tart away from the metal rim before you spring the pan open. Because the tart is cold this takes some pressure and some patience. It’s worth this extra step though so you don’t break the crust trying to get it out of the pan.

Serving Suggestions:

Display on a pretty platter. Then make your final topping or plan to serve plain. Melt the chocolate and cream, and this time use a small spoon to take the chocolate mixture out of the pan and drizzle it around the edges of the tart. I do this in a swirl pattern to decorate the tart. I leave the middle two or three-inch plain so the drizzle decoration looks like a chocolate-swirl wreath around the sides. You can leave the tart out of the refrigerator for up to a couple of hours before serving it; depending on how hot it is in your area.

I like to leave it out at least 15 minutes so the depth of flavor comes out. If you serve it too cold it tastes too much like refrigerator cold. I don’t like to serve this sort of dessert right out of the refrigerator because I think it tastes better if it’s just cool and not cold. Cut with a sharp knife and serve. You’ll hear MMMM and YUM from all who taste it.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola