Gluten Free Boozy Chocolate Florentine Tarts
Sadly we just won’t have room in the Winter issue of Living Magazines for our normal recipe feature, so here it is online!
Thanks so much to Sarah Murray of Beechwood Fine Foods for providing us with this – it’s great to have a tried and tested gluten-free recipe for those who need it!
Florentine ingredients:
- 50g unsalted butter
- 50g golden syrup
- 50g demerara sugar
- 20g mixed peel
- 30g finely chopped dried apricots
- 50g finely chopped dried cranberries
- Finely grated zest of ½ orange
- 50g plain gluten free flour
- 60g flaked almonds
Chocolate ganache ingredients (for the filling):
- 150ml double cream
- 15g unsalted butter
- 150g 70% plain chocolate
- 2-3tsp brandy
- 2 baking trays lined with baking parchment
- 12-hole bun tin greased with butter
Oven 180C/Gas 4/Fan oven 160C
How to make it
- Melt the butter, golden syrup and sugar in a large saucepan until the mixture starts to bubble. Remove from the heat, add the rest of the Florentine ingredients, and mix. Leave to cool.
- Divide the mixture into 10 small balls. Place five on to each baking tray and flatten slightly, making sure they are well spaced, as they will spread. Bake the first tray for 8-10 minutes.
- When the Florentines have spread and are golden brown around the edges, remove from the oven and place your second tray in the oven. After 1-2 minutes, the baked Florentines should be cool enough to handle, but still flexible enough to move without snapping.
- One by one place each Florentine over a hole in the bun tin and push down. Small gaps will probably appear, but they should still be soft enough to mould into the tray. Repeat with the second tray of Florentines, and leave to cool in the tin.
- To make the filling, warm the cream and butter in a small saucepan until steaming but not boiling. Break the chocolate into a bowl and pour over the hot cream mixture. Leave to stand for a few minutes before mixing to form a smooth, shiny ganache. Stir in the brandy. (If your mixture splits, try stirring in a little milk, a teaspoon at a time, until it becomes smooth again.)
- Fill each Florentine cup with ganache. Decorate with dried fruits and nuts (optional), and dust with icing sugar. Keep refrigerated, but bring back to room temperature for serving.