Chocolate Lavender Tart

I got this recipe from Gluten-Free Girl. It calls for cream, but she has told me on Instagram that it works with coconut milk, too, so you can use that if you don’t have lactose-free cream where you live. I didn’t feel like stocking the pantry with gluten-free flours to make a crust, so I used a store-bought wheat-flour crust. While this tart was delicious, my problem with it is that I couldn’t taste the lavender at all. I think that ¼ tsp. of dried lavender buds, in a chocolate tart, just isn’t enough – I used more myself, and still couldn’t actually taste it. If you have food-grade lavender oil, then ¼ tsp. of that should be just fine; otherwise, I’d use at least 1 tsp. of dried lavender buds next time. Lavender or not, this was absolutely delicious!

1 pie crust (use any recipe you’d like, or buy it premade)
¾ cup lactose-free whole milk
¾ cup lactose-free cream (or coconut milk)
1 tsp. dried lavender buds (see note above)
7 oz. high-quality bittersweet chocolate (such as Callebaut or Scharffen Berger), chopped into small pieces
4 large egg yolks
¼ cup + 2 Tbsp. extra-fine white sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 °F.

Pat the dough into a tart shell, trying to make the bottom as thick as the sides. Chill. With a fork, poke some holes in the bottom of the shell. Bake the tart shell in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until it has turned golden brown. Set aside to cool.

In a small saucepan, bring the milk and cream to a boil. Stir in the lavender and immediately take the pan off the heat. After the lavender and cream have rested for 10 minutes, strain the liquid and discard the lavender. Turn the burner on medium and return the cream mixture to the saucepan. Put in the chocolate pieces and let it sit and melt for 3 minutes, then whisk the concoction together.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together. Pour in the chocolate-cream mixture, slowly, whisking all the while. Once it is evenly mixed, pour the chocolate filling in the tart pan, filling just enough to come to the top.

Chill the tart in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, preferably more, before serving. Try to let the tart sit at room temperature for a while before serving it, so that it is not icy cold when you cut it. (Tip: dip a sharp knife in hot water between each slice.)