sweet treat

WHITE CHOCOLATE, CARDAMOM AND RASPBERRY TART (Serves 12)

INGREDIENTS

200g pecans 200g hazelnuts 175g unsalted butter, melted 2 pinches of sea salt 250g mascarpone 100ml double cream 300g good-quality white chocolate 1tsp vanilla extract 1tsp ground cardamom 250g raspberries

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 180˚C/gas 4. Spread the pecans and hazelnuts out on a baking tray and roast for about 15 minutes until nicely golden. Remove and set aside to cool.

2. Place half the nuts in a food possessor and blitz to a fine powder, then put into a bowl. Blitz the rest of the nuts to a rough crumb, then mix with the powdered nuts. Add melted butter and a pinch of sea salt and stir to combine. Tip the mixture into a 23cm loose-bottomed tart tin and press up the sides and into the bottom of the tin. You want the base to be crunchy and thin. Chill in the fridge as you make the filling.

3. Put the mascarpone, double cream, white chocolate, vanilla and cardamom into a pan and warm over a low heat, stirring all the time to let the chocolate melt, then add a pinch of salt and remove from the heat.

4. Pour the mixture into the base. Return to the fridge and leave to set for about one hour.

5. Put the raspberries into a sieve suspended over a bowl and press through the sieve with a spoon, leaving the seeds behind. Take the tart out of the fridge and use a teaspoon to dot blobs of the puree over the tart. Turn the spoon over and drag the dots a little to create a pretty, swirled effect.

6. Return to the fridge for another two hours to set completely.