Chocolate Peanut Butter Tarts
(Makes one 8-inch or six 3-inch tarts)

Even adults love this dessert! The smooth peanut butter filling contrasts with the chocolate graham cracker crust, providing a toothsome treat. It is not too sweet and not too rich. The filling is light but very flavorful, and the entire dessert is a breeze to make. The only thing that bakes is the crust, and the dessert can be made in less than 45 minutes. What takes the longest is waiting for the crust to cool before you can fill it.

For the tart:
Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust (recipe follows)
1-1/2 cups chilled heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar)
1 cup creamy peanut butter (not the natural kind)

For the Topping:
2 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Set up your mise en place. (See the Helpful Hints section of this web site.) Make the Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust (recipe below). Using an electric mixer beat the cream on high speed until it is thick and holds a peak when you take the beater out. Beat in the powdered sugar, being sure it is entirely mixed in. Put the peanut butter in a medium sized bowl and stir in about 1/3 of the whipped cream, then fold the peanut butter-cream mixture into the remaining whipped cream. Spoon the filling into the completely cooled, baked graham cracker crust, or use a pastry tube and bag to decoratively pipe it into the crust. To make the topping, place the chocolate and the cream in a microwave-safe container and microwave for 1 minute, or until most of the chocolate is melted. Stir the topping with a whisk to completely melt all of the chocolate and continue stirring until the topping is very smooth. Do not beat the topping. When it is smooth, drizzle it decoratively over the tart. If desired, you can serve the tart with sweetened whipped cream.

Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust
(Makes one 8-inch or six 3-inch tart shells)

Cracker crusts are an essential part of baking home style desserts. They can be varied by using differently flavored graham crackers, by adding a half teaspoonful of cinnamon, by adding a half cupful of ground nuts, or by using different kinds of crisp cookies. You can either grind the graham crackers in a food processor (this is the best way) or put them into a heavy zip top plastic bag and roll over them with a rolling pin until they are finely crushed. In addition, you can substitute crisp chocolate wafers or the chocolate wafers that are like vanilla wafers. You can also use this recipe for crusts for cheesecakes and as the shells for many other fillings.

1-1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs (10-12 double squares)
1/2 cup melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Set up your mise en place. (See the Helpful Hints section of this web site.) Mix all of the ingredients and press them firmly into the baking dish, being certain that the crumbs come all the way up the sides of the dish. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

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