The Dessert That Taught Me to Like Fruit & Chocolate

If the grocery store isn't your favorite place, it should be. We're sleuthing for the best back-of-the-box recipes and every Sunday, Posie Harwood from 600 Acres will share our latest find. 

Today: Everything (including chocolate ganache pie) is better when topped with fresh figs. 

I have something to confess: I don't really like chocolate with fruit. I'm sorry if it makes me seem less adventurous, or my tastebuds less cosmopolitan, but there's something jarring about pairing bright, tangy lemon with dark and creamy chocolate. It should work, like adding a pop of color to an all-black outfit, but it tastes wrong to me. 

Or strawberries dipped in chocolate: Cute, right? Sexy, even? No. I get distracted: slippery, delicately sweet fruit on one hand and assertive, crunchy chocolate on the other. It's just not my scene, but give me a bar of chocolate and a pint of strawberries separately, and we're in business.

The reason for this confession is to highlight how extraordinary and thrilling it is that I loved this tart. Even me, avowed hater of fruit and chocolate! If I love it, you will too. 

I adapted the recipe for the tart from the Baker's Chocolate box. Baker's instructs you to use a chocolate cookie crust, but I thought that might overshadow the filling, so I used a basic graham cracker crust instead. The filling itself couldn't be more simple: melt semisweet chocolate with cream, then pour it into your crust to set.

The recipe called for a thin layer of raspberry jam folded into the filling, plus a topping of fresh raspberries. I nixed the jam (but you should try it if it sounds appealing) and I opted for fresh figs on the top. Figs have a honey-like sweetness that I thought might help overcome my fruit and chocolate phobia. They did the trick, handily, and they also look exceptionally beautifully even when strewn haphazardly across your tart.

A shower of powdered sugar at the end is optional, but I highly recommended it.

Chocolate Ganache Tart with Fresh Figs

Adapted from Baker's Chocolate

Makes one 8-inch tart

8 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup fresh figs, halved or quartered
2 tablespoons powdered sugar (optional, for dusting)
12 graham cracker sheets
1/2 cup butter, melted

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Do you have a favorite back of the box recipe, or have you heard about a great one? Leave any suggestions in the comments, and I'll try them out and share them here!

Photos by Posie Harwood