Chocolate, Almond, and Toasted Coconut Tart

This tart was inspired by a recipe I found in Bon Appetit.  The original called for dried fruit and nuts, but tossed out the idea of using coconut.  A bag of toasted coconut has been sitting in my pantry forever, waiting patiently, so I thought I would give it a whirl.  While I was melting the chocolate, I got to thinking that something was missing from the dish.  It wasn't long before it came to me: almonds. I had almonds in my pantry, too.  Chocolate, plus toasted coconut, plus almonds? Without really intending to, I made an Almond Joy Tart. 

Why did I even start with a tart?  Mostly because I recently bought a tart pan for $4.99 at Marshals and I couldn't wait to use it.

And this recipe was so simple. Roll out and bake some pie dough. No fuss.  That's the way I roll.

Melt some chocolate with cream.  Add almonds.  Pour chocolate into tart shell (after the tart crust cools).  Top with toasted coconut and place in the refrigerator for two hours. 

The tart was rich, creamy, and way better than any Almond Joy I've ever tasted.   A perfect dessert for chocolate lovers.  You can also use this recipe to make almond joy bark; instructions coming soon.

Almond Joy Tart

Ingredients

pie dough
1/2 cup cream
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup toasted coconut
1/2 cup almonds

Directions

1.  Prepare pie dough (or buy some like I did). You only need a "bottom" so you can save the "top" for another recipe.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
3.  Roll out pie dough.  Place in a 10-inch diameter tart pan (I used a 9-inch pan because that's what I have).  Press dough along the edges and inner wall of the pan so that the dough adheres to the pan.  I let the dough hang over the pan and then tore off extra pieces after it was done baking.  Otherwise, your dough will shrink while cooking and you will end up with half a tart.  Place a sheet of parchment paper over the dough and fill center of the tart with beans (or pie weights if you have them).  This will prevent the tart from puffing up.  Place in oven and bake for about 12 minutes or until crust is golden brown.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Remove excess crust.
4.  Meanwhile, on really low heat, warm cream.  When cream is hot begin to slowly add chocolate chips while stirring constantly.  If the chocolate clumps, remove from heat or add a touch more cream (but keep stirring). Eventually, you will have smooth chocolate sauce.
5.  Stir in almonds.
6. Pour into tart shell and top with toasted coconut.
7.  Chill in fridge for two hours.  Serve cold or at room temperature.

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