Peanut butter pretzel tartlets
Don’t use miniature pretzels for the crust. They are too firm and don’t pulverize like the larger ones. I like using the honey wheat sticks from Trader Joe’s. Also, I find that the consistency of natural peanut butter varies greatly. If it is on the firmer side, I’ll use the peanut butter as is. If it’s runnier, mix in ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar to make the peanut butter layer firmer.
- About 2Â cups whole grain pretzel sticks
- ¼ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes, plus more for the tins
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- â…“ cup muscovado sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 ounces dark chocolate (60% to 72%Â cacao)
- ÂĽ cup heavy cream
- â…“ cup creamy natural peanut butter
- ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, if needed
- ÂĽ cup toasted, salted peanuts
- Flaked sea salt, such as Maldon, for garnish
Instructions:
Both peanut butter–filled and chocolate covered pretzels are favorites in our house, and this is sort of the marriage of the two. Salty pretzels go into the crust, which is dressed up with a peanut butter cup filling—perfect for when you just want a few bites of something sweet, or you’re having a get-together where people are grazing more than sitting down to dessert.
- In a food processor, pulse the pretzel pieces until they form a coarse meal.
- Don’t worry if there are a few small chunks remaining. Measure the pulverized pretzels; you should have 1½ cups. Adjust the quantity, if necessary. Add the cold butter, vanilla, sugar, and egg yolk to the food processor and pulse until just combined. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture sticks together.
- Alternatively, you could pulverize the pretzels in a blender and combine them with the butter, vanilla, sugar, and egg yolk, using a pastry cutter, then stir in the water 1 tablespoon at a time. Chill the mixture in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease two mini-muffin tins with butter.
- Press a heaping tablespoonful of the crust mixture into each well of the muffin tins, making sure to press it into the corners, so that there is a thin layer of crust on the bottom and up the sides. Even out the edge on the top by pressing it down a bit with your fingers. Bake the crusts until dry and barely golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- While the crusts are cooling, break the chocolate into small pieces in a heatproof glass bowl. In a small saucepan, warm the cream just barely to a simmer and pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let it sit for a minute, and then gently stir until the chocolate is uniformly melted.
- Remove the tart shells from the muffin tins and place them on a serving tray. If the peanut butter is somewhat runny, stir in the confectioners’ sugar to firm it up. Using a small spoon, dollop ½ tea-spoon of the peanut butter into each tart shell. Use a clean spoon to cover the peanut butter layer with a spoonful of the chocolate ganache. You should have enough to fill each tart to the top.
- Put a peanut on top of each tart and sprinkle with the salt. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes to set. They can be kept covered in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.