Method

For the pastry:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the icing sugar, butter, vanilla & salt.
2. Beat the mixture for 2 minutes on a medium speed until it forms a paste. Scrape down the bowl after 1 minute.
3. Add in the egg yolks and beat the mixture again until it is all combined – about 30s. Scrape down the bowl, and beat again to incorporate any remaining egg.
4. Finally, add in the flour, and very gently mix this in with your mixer on a low speed until it is just combined (about 10-15s) and all of the flour is incorporated. The mixture should look crumbly but should not form one giant ball of dough.
5. Tip the mixture onto a lightly floured surface and split the dough into three batches – roughly the size of 3 small baseballs.
6. Place a large sheet of parchment paper down, lightly flour it, and place one batch of dough on top. Lightly flour the dough and then place another large piece of parchment paper over the top.
7. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is about 3mm thick and roughly into the shape of a circle (it should be the thickness of a pound coin). Place the whole sheet of pastry in the freezer for 30m. Repeat this with the second & third batch of dough. Very lightly grease your tart rings with some soft butter and set them to one side.

*You can also do this rolling process between two silicon mats which will make the dough slightly easier to roll.

8. Once the dough has chilled remove one sheet from the freezer. Working very quickly, peel off the top sheet of parchment paper, very lightly flour the pastry, then flip it over onto your baking tray lined with a baking mat. Peel off the remaining sheet of parchment paper and lightly flour the dough again.
9. Using a 3″ round perforated tart ring, cut out 4 large circles of dough, and peel off the excess dough around the edge.
10. Remove a second sheet of dough from the freezer, we now need to create the walls of the pastry cases. Using a sharp knife or a pastry wheel, cut 4 long strips of dough about 7” long and ¾” wide. Lift the strips up and place them on the inside of the tart rings, pressing them against the side so that they are flush with the dough at the bottom. If your pastry doesn’t quite fit all the way around just cut another piece and slot it in like a puzzle. Press the bottom of the dough gently with your fingers to mold it to the base piece of dough. If the dough begins to feel too soft to lift, place it back in the freezer for 10 minutes. If you didn’t quite get 4 walls from the second sheet, use the third batch of dough to create the remaining walls.
11. Take a sharp knife and holding it completely horizontal, cut off any excess pastry hanging over the top of the tart rings. Place the tart shells into the freezer for 30m.
12. Preheat your oven to 165C Fan (330F) or 175C Non-Fan (350F). Once it’s hot, place the tray with your tart shells on, in the oven. Bake for 25-30m or until the tart shell is lightly golden.
13. Remove the tart shells from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15m.

For the salted caramel:

1. To make the caramel, place the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. The key here is not to stir the mixture otherwise it will crystalise. Only once the sugar has turned a light golden colour is when you can begin to whisk is together. Once light in colour, keep it on the heat until it turns a nice deep copper colour.
2. Once you have a deep copper colour, remove the pan from the heat immediately and whisk in the cream, salt and the butter. The mixture will bubble up violently so be careful.
3. Keep whisking until any lumps have dissolved and you are left with a smooth caramel. If you do have any lumps left, just pop the pan over a low heat until everything has melted. Pour the caramel into a glass jar and keep it at room temperature ready to use (you will have a bit leftover but save this for another dessert!)

For the ganache:

1. In a tall jug add the chocolate, finely chopped.
2. Meanwhile, take a medium saucepan and place the cream on a medium low heat. Heat it until it is just steaming, but not boiling.
3. Once hot, pour it straight over the chocolate and allow it to sit for 2m before blending with a stick blender. Set to one side.

Assembly:

1. Take a few of the Mrs Crimble’s Big Choc Macaroons and chop them up. Sprinkle them over the base of the cooled tart shell.
2. Using a piping bag, fill the tart shell to the top with chocolate ganache and place the tarts in the freezer for 10 minutes, allowing them to set on the top ever so slightly.
3. Once set, take the cooled salted caramel and drizzle this over the top of the tart and serve.