Chocolate Tart Recipe with Hazelnut and Orange Pastry
Last updated on October 17th, 2026
This chocolate and hazelnut tart recipe looks like the kind of thing that takes a pastry chef’s precision to pull off: a glossy ganache filling, a crisp shortcrust base, and perfectly clean slices. If you want that same wow factor in about 15 minutes, my Michelin-style dark chocolate dessert is well worth a try. In reality it comes down to a handful of small, deliberate steps: skins rubbed off the hazelnuts, pastry rested flat instead of balled up, cream heated but never boiled. Get those right and the rest takes care of itself. A spoonful of fresh homemade ricotta sweetened with a little honey makes a delicious, lighter alternative to cream on the side.
After 20 years in professional kitchens, I know a great chocolate tart comes down to the small details, the one percents that add up to make 100.
Why Chocolate, Hazelnut and Orange Work So Well
Rich dark chocolate needs something to cut through it, and that’s exactly the job the orange zest is doing here: its citrus notes stop the tart from tasting flat or one-note. The hazelnuts add a roasted, nutty backbone to the pastry itself, plus the textural crunch you don’t get from a plain shortcrust.
How to Make a Chocolate Tart Shell
The shell is a sweet shortcrust pastry with roasted hazelnuts and orange zest. Most chocolate tarts go wrong here, with a base that shrinks or goes soggy. These four steps stop both.
Roast and Skin the Hazelnuts
Roast the hazelnuts at 180C/350F for about 10 minutes, until the skins darken and blister. Rub and roll them in a clean cloth for a minute and around 80% of the bitter skins come off, which is plenty. Cool for five minutes, halve them so they stop rolling around the board, then run your knife through them. You want pieces, not powder.
Mix the Shortcrust Pastry by Hand
Cream the butter and icing sugar, then add the orange zest (no white pith, it’s bitter), salt, hazelnuts and flour, and bring it together with your hands into a shaggy dough. A machine tends to overwork the gluten, and that makes pastry shrink in the oven. Add the beaten egg from 15 g upwards until the dough is slightly tacky. You can always add, but you can’t take away.
Rest the Dough Flat, Not in a Ball
Most recipes rest the dough as a ball in cling film, but then you have to roll it a lot, which works the gluten and risks shrinking. Instead, press it between two sheets of baking paper into an even circle about the thickness of your little finger and chill it for at least an hour.
Roll, Cut With a Ring and Seal With Egg Wash
Roll the middle of the dough first, turning it a sixth at a time to keep it round (a quarter turn gives you a square), then bring the edges to the same 5 mm thickness. Peel off the top paper and press a pastry ring straight down into it. You get a perfect cut without handling the pastry, which is why I prefer a ring to a tart case.
Brush it all over with the rest of the egg, loosened with a splash of milk or water. It works like a varnish and stops the base going soggy, so don’t skip it. Bake at 160C/320F for 10 to 15 minutes until golden; mine took 12. It should be firm with a little give.
How to Make the Chocolate Ganache Filling
The filling is a simple ganache of cream, dark chocolate and cold butter.
Heat the Cream, Never Boil It
Use whipping cream with about 30% fat; double cream makes the tart too rich. Warm it on a low heat, stirring so it doesn’t catch, until you see wisps of steam but no bubbles. I take mine to 65C/150F.
Which Chocolate to Use
Use dark chocolate between 48% and 70% cocoa. Milk or white chocolate makes the tart too sweet and it won’t set properly. Break it into small pieces so it melts evenly.
Stir In Cold Butter for a Glossy Finish
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and stir gently, as stirring too fast cools it down. Then add fridge-cold butter in small cubes and stir more firmly until every lump has gone. Any left unmixed gives you a greasy shine or pockets of butter.
Seal the Edges Before You Pour
Spoon a little ganache around the inside edge first, tap it into any gaps where the pastry has shrunk, and chill for 10 minutes in the fridge or 5 in the freezer. It’s an insurance policy against the filling running out underneath. Then pour in the rest and chill for at least four hours, ideally overnight.
How to Release the Tart and Cut Clean Slices
Finish with grated dark chocolate, cocoa powder, hazelnuts or orange zest. Warm the outside of the ring briefly with a blowtorch and it lifts off with a clean edge. No blowtorch? Run a small knife dipped in very hot water around the inside.
Mark the centre with a toothpick. Heat a long knife in hot water, dry it, line it up and press firmly all the way through the base. Pull the knife out through the side rather than back up through the top, then clean and dry it between every cut.
What to Serve With Chocolate Tart
This tart goes great with fresh strawberries and raspberries, or the lighter ricotta option above.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do chocolate, hazelnut, and orange work so well together?
The rich chocolate pairs with the roasted, nutty flavour of hazelnuts, while the citrus notes of orange cut through the sweetness for balance. The hazelnuts also add crunch against the smooth chocolate filling.
Should I remove the skin from the hazelnuts?
Yes, remove as much of the hazelnut skin as possible before using them. The skin carries a bitter taste that can throw off the flavour of the finished tart.
How do I stop the pastry from shrinking?
Avoid over-kneading the pastry. Working it too much develops the gluten, which leads to a tougher texture and more shrinkage during baking, so handle it as little as possible.
What’s the easiest way to release the tart from the ring?
Run a blowtorch or a hot knife briefly around the outside of the ring or mould. The gentle heat loosens the edges for a clean release without damaging the tart.
How do I get clean, even slices of tart?
Mark the centre of the tart with a toothpick or cocktail stick first to guide even portions, then dip your knife in a jug of hot water and wipe it with a paper towel between each cut for smooth, Instagram-worthy slices.
Chocolate Tart Recipe with Hazelnut and Orange Pastry
Equipment
- Baking / Roasting tray
- Ring cutter / Pastry ring
- Food processor
- Mixing bowl / Bowl
- Blowtorch / Lighter
- Chef’s knife
- Chopping board
- Knife (general)
- Microplane / Fine grater
- Digital scales
- Measuring jug
- Measuring spoons
- Thermometer / Probe
- Saucepan
- Serving plate / Platter
- Dough scraper / Bench scraper
- Palette knife / Metal spatula
- Pastry brush
- Rolling Pin
- Spatula (silicone, general)
- Toothpicks
Ingredients
- 140 g Unsalted butter
- 90 g Icing / Powered sugar
- 65 g Roasted & skinned hazelnuts
- 180 g Plain / all-purpose flour
- Pinch of salt 1/5 of a teaspoon
- 1/3 of the zest of 1 orange
- 1 egg
- 370 g Dark chocolate between 48% & 70% cacao content
- 400 ml Whipping cream 30% fat content
- 85 g Cubed cold unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Place 65 grams of hazelnuts on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10 minutes, or until the skins have started to darken and blister.
- Remove hazelnuts from the oven and place in a clean cloth. Rub and roll them around for 1 minute to remove the skins.
- Allow hazelnuts to cool for 5 minutes, then chop them in half with a knife to create small pieces.
- In a mixing bowl, cream together 140 grams of softened unsalted butter and 90 grams of icing or powdered sugar.
- Add 1/3 of the zest of one orange, a pinch of salt, the chopped hazelnuts, and 180 grams of plain or all-purpose flour. Mix together with your hands until a shaggy dough forms.
- Add 15-25 grams of beaten egg to the dough until it reaches a slightly tacky or sticky consistency.
- Rest the dough in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour by placing it between two sheets of parchment paper and pressing it into an even circle.
- Preheat oven to 160C/320F.
- Roll out the dough to a thickness of 5 millimetres or 1/5 of an inch, using a pastry ring or case to guide the shape and size.
- Brush the pastry all over with the other half of the beaten egg, loosened with a splash of milk or water, to stop the base going soggy. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown and firm to the touch with a little give. Leave to cool while you make the filling.
- In a small saucepan, add 400 millilitres of whipping cream (30% fat content) and heat on low. Stir occasionally to prevent it from catching on the bottom of the saucepan. Do not allow it to boil.
- In a large heatproof mixing bowl, break up 370 grams of dark chocolate (48-70% cocoa) into smaller pieces.
- Once the cream is hot and producing wisps of steam, remove it from heat and pour it over the chocolate pieces. Gently stir until the chocolate is fully melted.
- Add 85 grams of cold butter (cubed) to the mixture and continue to stir until it is fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth.
- Carefully spoon the mixture around the edges of the cooled pastry to seal any gaps. Place in the fridge for 10 minutes or the freezer for 5 minutes.
- Once the mixture is set, pour it into the tart case and smooth the top with a silicon spatula.
- Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, or ideally overnight.
- The next day, add finishing touches such as grated chocolate, cocoa powder, chopped hazelnuts, or orange zest.
- Carefully slide the tart off of the baking tray and remove the ring from around the base.
- Use a blowtorch to gently heat the outside of the ring to melt the chocolate, or use a hot knife to free the ring from the tart.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
| Total Fat | 61g |
| Saturated Fat | 34g |
| Cholesterol | 128mg |
| Sodium | 87mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 55g |
| Dietary Fiber | 5g |
| Sugars | 30g |
| Protein | 8g |
| Potassium | 404mg |
