Vanilla and White Chocolate Raspberry Tart

makes one 9″ tart

For the white chocolate mousse:
3/4 cup (175 g) heavy cream
2/3 cup (135 g) whole milk
1/2 vanilla bean (or 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract)
6 oz (175 g) good white chocolate (I used Callebaut), finely chopped

Other components:
1 tart shell from this post
1 cup raspberry preserve or lemon curd
2 pints raspberries

1. Using a plain ol’ whisk, whip the heavy cream to soft peak. Keep the whipped cream refrigerated until called for.

2. Pour the milk into a small pot. Split half a vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the milk. The pods can get thrown in there too to extract maximum vanilla flavor. Whisk it up to distribute the vanilla seeds and bring it to a simmer over medium heat. This will only take a couple of minutes since there is so little milk.

2. Next, pour this vanilla-y concoction over a fine-mesh trainer, which is set over the bowl of finely chopped white chocolate. If you’re using vanilla extract, pour it right in now.

3. Let this sit undisturbed for a moment or two. The heat from the milk will melt the white chocolate.

4. Now whisk this up until smooth. It’s a liquidy ganache of sorts. Let it cool down to the touch. It should be like room temperature water. Set aside.

(We’re about to fold in the whipped cream. If this mix is too warm, the cream will deflate considerably and the mousse wont be as light. If it’s too cool, the chocolate might start to firm up, so don’t wait too long either. But don’t worry, there is a big window of time before this happens.)

6. Now we get folding. Using a rubber spatula, scrape 1/3 of the whipped cream into the white chocolate and fold it in. Since the white chocolate liquid is quite dense and heavy to begin with, this will help lighten it. The rest of the cream will be easier to incorporate and will lose less volume. (If the whipped cream is a little stiff and doesn’t incorporate easily, be gentle but persistent. It will come together.)

7. Now add the rest of the whipped cream and carefully fold it all together until smooth and creamy.

8. Grab your prepared tart shell and slather the bottom with a thin layer of the preferred flavor — raspberry preserve, or lemon curd.

9. Pour in the white chocolate mousse. Refrigerate this for about half an hour to allow the mousse to start setting up, or the raspberries may sink to the bottom.

10. Decorate with raspberries. I start by circling the outside, and keep circling the interior until I get to the center. Refrigerate until completely set up. This is best served the day it’s made because the tart shells starts to absorb moisture.

Yum!