Darjeeling + Rose + Honey + Cardamom + Chocolate Tart

Inspiration comes from a variety of sources. For example, take the title of my site, 'Darjeeling Dreams'. The 'Dreams' comes from the way that the site serves as a storage unit for photographs and other bits that I find lovely. The 'Darjeeling' part is more complex. It is a reflection of my love for tea, but also that I prefer drinking Darjeeling tea with most desserts. Also, a short while before I created the site, I was standing in line at an ice cream shop and in front of me was a Indian mother and her grown daughter, speaking in an Indian language. One of the flavors at the shop that day was an Darjeeling ice cream, and both were puzzled about what it was. The daughter thought it was some sort of a green tea. Which made me sad - that something wonderful and luxurious that is produced in India is generally exported away. And thus, 'Darjeeling' reflects me in that my ancestry is Asian Indian, but I was born and brought up in foodie and Asian-influenced San Francisco bay area.
Although tea has become very chic and tea shops are become prolific in my area, most of what is consumed comes from Thailand, Taiwan, China, or Japan. Darjeeling is sadly neglected, so much so that I usually order mine from France (from Mariage Freres). Darjeeling tea is often called the 'champagne of teas', as it is bright amber in color, with a flowery scent, light-bodied and has a note of muscatel. The comparison to champagne is doubly-fitting because Darjeelings are among the most expensive and prized teas in the world. The cost varies by origin of the tea, the part of the tea bush that the leaf came from, and by the 'flush', or harvest. The finest are the special-finest-tippy-golden-flowery-orange pekoe (or S.F.T.G.F.O.P. 1), which means that only the small, most tender top-of-the-branch leaf is used - the 'f.o.p.' or flowery orange pekoe, that these are fine golden tips - the 't.g.' , and the '1' indicates that it is the first harvest of the year - the early spring harvest. Another factor to take into account is the estate producing the tea. According to Mariage Freres, there are currently 87 tea estates, and of the ones that I have tried, Margaret's Hope and Castleton are my favorites.
The focal point, the inspiration, of this tart is chocolate tart is Darjeeling tea. Since my site is named for the tea, I've been wanting to use it in a recipe for a while, but the recipe had to be the right one. It had to be special. This tart is most definitely that. I wish I had made it for some sort of occasion. It is perhaps the most indulgent and romantic dessert that I have made yet. Its too rich to keep to yourself, so share it with someone - or someones.

{click on photograph to see larger + more clearly}

For it, I used tea-infused honey and sacrificed some of my Margaret's Hope. Margaret's Hope is very flowery, and just a touch more brisk than Castleton. I paired it with cardamom and just the faintest hint of rose. These flavors were combined into a chocolate tart with a rich buttery crust. If you chose to make the same tart, you can change the flavors easily. For example, you could use caramel instead of honey, omit the rose, use Earl Grey instead of Darjeeling and nutmeg, clove, and/or cloves rather than cardamom, add hazelnuts or walnuts to the tart shell, and you'd have a autumn-appropriate tart.



Darjeeling + Rose + Honey + Cardamom + Chocolate Tart
Shell:
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, cut into 1/4 inch cubes and frozen for 1+ hour
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp honey
Chocolate filling
12 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-in bits
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp rosewater
1 cup cream
1.5 tbsp loose Darjeeling (or Oolong or Earl Grey) tea leaves
10 coarsely crushed cardamom pods, and 2 finely crushed (separately)
Make pastry dough: mix together flour and salt on your work surface. Blend in most of the butter (reserve about 6 little cubes in the freezer) with your fingertips or a pastry blender just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps.
Drizzle honey over the mixture. Then, gradually drizzle 2 tbsp ice water over mixture while gently mixing with a fork.
Squeeze a small handful of dough: If it doesn’t hold together, add more ice water 1 Tbsp at a time, stirring until just incorporated, then test again. Do not overwork dough, or pastry will be tough.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together, with a pastry scraper if you have one, and press into a ball. Wrap disk in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour. In the meantime, prep a circular 10-in or rectangular 14 x 4.5 inch tart pan by brushing melted butter onto the bottom and sides of the pan, and covering the bottom with parchment/wax paper.
When you are ready to roll out the dough, make sure your countertop (or rolling surface) is very, very clean, and flour (rice flour is best, I found) lightly. Flour the rolling pin as well, and reserve a handful of flour. Roll out ball as thinly and evenly as possible. Fold dough in half, and roll out again, keeping the shape rectangular or circular (depending on your tart pan), and as even in thickness as possible, Fit dough into prepped tart pan: press dough against side of pan and leave 1/4 inch above sides. Line shell with foil and fill with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice.
Preheat oven to 350°f, and chill prepped pasty dough while the oven heats. Bake for 20+ minutes, or until the sides are set. Turn the oven up to 375°f, remove foil and weights/beans/rice from tart, and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until the tart shell is golden and flaky.
Make the chocolate ganache filling: After putting the tart shell in the oven, infuse the cream: combine cream, darjeeling tea leaves, and 10 coarsely crushed cardamom pods in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer, remove from heat, and allow the mixture to sit for at least ten minutes. Use a knife or food processor to mince the chocolate. Combine in a large metal/heatproof bowl, add 1 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp honey, 1/4 tsp rosewater.
After the tart is removed from the oven, strain the cream, pressing down on contents to maximize flavor. Add the 2 well-crushed cardamom pods to the cream. Set up double boiler, or suspend the large heatproof bowl over simmering water. Combine the chocolate and cream mixtures. Whisk until chocolate has just melted and mixture is smooth and remove from heat immediately. Pour into tart shell, and allow the tart to cool in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or until the chocolate filling is set.