Mondays with Maida - Fudge Délices

Page 242 in the old book / page 264 in the new book

These little chocolate tarts were delicious and should have been relatively simple to make. I made an unfortunate decision a few weeks back when I ordered the little tartlet pans - I only bought 12. The recipe makes 23 (more on that later) and I really should have purchased two dozen of the pans.

Another problem I had was that a goof I made while preparing the filling caused the chocolate to seize. Even as I was adding the milk, butter and vanilla to the melted chocolate I was thinking, "this is interesting, seems like these liquids would make the chocolate seize." Well, I was right about that but I was remembering the instructions incorrectly - I should have been adding the sugar at the same time. Instead, I added it after the chocolate seized. It seemed to recover fairly well, but I wouldn't be surprised if that was the root of my later troubles - while baking, the butter bubbled up in the filling leaving the surface sort of pock-marked. The tartlet you see above is one of very few that weren't scarred in that way.

I also think that my tartlets were over-filled. Maida was emphatic that 23 was number to make to ensure that the filling was the proper thickness, but nearly all mine lacked a clean edge of pastry because the filling rose up over it. My pans were slightly bigger than those called for (2 3/8" rather than 2 1/4") but I used a 2 3/4" cookie cutter for the pastry as specified in the recipe. There was plenty of pastry leftover, so next time I'd make 24.

After all my difficulties, I assumed the cookies were going to be a disaster and was resigned to making a second batch. But after sampling one, I decided to go ahead and bring in my flawed but tasty cookies. Top Chef I am not :)

Here's the panel...

Suzanne: "Delicious! The inside of the tart cookie shell tastes like a chocolate fudge brownie with a pecan on top. They were also very attractive. The rating is definitely at 5 and if I could I’d rate then even higher. Rating - 5.0

Denny: "Excellent 5.0. Only problem was there weren't enough of them. Not too crunchy or sweet, just right. Did not look as great as they were! Rating - 5.0"

Laura: "Nice flaky tart shell with moist and delicious brownie-like filling. Rating - 4.5"

Terri: "These cookies are outstanding and a must for chocolate lovers! I really liked the crust or shell in which the fudge was held. Almost like a mini fudge pie. Rating - 5.0"

Overall rating by the panel - 4.9

Next week - Chocolate Meringue Ladyfingers

Nutrition Facts