Lemongrass, ginger and lime leaf chocolate tart

This is such a decadent tart, combining rich dark chocolate spiced up with fragrant lemongrass, lime leaves and ginger. The lychees, filled with white chocolate and chopped lime leaves, add an element of surprise. Raspberries filled with this mix are equally delicious.

SERVES 6-8

For the Sweet pastry Case:

200g of plain flour

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70g of caster sugar 100g of chilled, unsalted

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butter, diced

2 egg yolks

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2–3 tbsps of milk

For the tart:

275g of dark chocolate,

broken into small pieces 275ml of double cream

4 sticks of lemongrass,

very finely chopped 3 tsps of ground ginger

3 kafir lime leaves, very finely chopped Juice of 1 lime 6 egg yolks 1 precooked sweet pastry tart case

For the lychees:

250g of white chocolate, ● broken into small pieces 2 kafir lime leaves, finely chopped

1 small can of lychees, drained

Cocoa powder, for dusting

1 To make the sweet pastry case, mix the flour and sugar together in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until incorporated and the mix resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, add the egg yolks and enough milk to form a soft dough, adding more if necessary. If making by hand, rub the butter into the flour, add the sugar and then bring it together with the egg yolks and milk. Remove the pastry and roll into a ball; wrap in

clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 20–30 minutes.

2 Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/GAS Mark 4.

Roll the pastry out between two sheets of baking paper (or on a lightly floured surface) until it is large enough to fill a dia.20cm tart case with a slight overhang. Remove the top sheet of the paper and invert the pastry into the tin, then remove the remaining paper and lightly press the dough into the tin, paying special attention to the edges. Cut away any overhanging edges, then rest in the fridge or freezer for 15 minutes (which will prevent the pastry from shrinking during cooking).

3 Line the pastry shell with paper, fill with baking beans or rice, place on a baking tray and cook for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the paper and beans and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes or until the base is dry to touch. Leave to cool in the tin.

4 To make the tart, place the chocolate, cream, lemongrass, ginger, lime leaves and lime juice in a heatproof bowl and heat over a pan of barely simmering water until the chocolate has melted. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and leave to cool.

5 Whisk the egg yolks into the chocolate mixture, one at a time. Pour the mixture into the prepared pastry case and cook for 5 minutes, or until just set and shiny. Leave to cool, then refrigerate until about 1 hour before you are ready to serve (this is best served at room temperature).

6 To prepare the lychees, place the white chocolate and lime leaves in a heatproof bowl and heat over a pan of barely simmering water until the chocolate has melted. Remove from the heat and leave to cool until slightly thickened or piping will be difficult.

7 Spoon the mixture into a small piping bag, and squeeze into the centre of each lychee. Refrigerate until the chocolate has set. To assemble, dust the tart with cocoa powder and serve with the chocolate lychees.