Hazelnut Praline Tart

Hazelnut Praline Tart Recipe


DifficultyAdvancedYields4 Servings

This hazelnut praline tart recipe has quite a few elements to it, but they’re not too challenging to make and once layered together they create both amazing flavours and textures.

The vanilla hazelnut praline is one of my favourite recipes – it’s like a hazelnut butter that melts in the mouth. Paired with the praline crunch it makes the ultimate combination!

It’s a sweet hazelnut pastry crust filled with hazelnut cream and topped with a praline crunch and mascarpone cream decoration. I’ve used a classic St Honore piping nozzle to create this eye catching design.

You can use the recipe to also make one large 8” tart, but I would recommend following the same instructions for baking the pastry and almond filling for Pear & Almond Tart as it is the same technique, but simply using the pastry and hazelnut cream recipe below. 

Watch the video and follow the step-by-step recipe to make this showstopping hazelnut tart.

Looking for more tart recipes? Check out my brown sugar tart recipe.


 


 

Ingredients


For the Mascarpone Whipped Ganache
 3 g Powdered Gelatin + 18g Cold Water
 300 g Double / Heavy Cream
 75 g White Chocolate
 100 g Mascarpone
 ½ tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
For the Vanilla Hazelnut Praline
 400 g Blanched HazelnutsYou will need some of the hazelnuts for the pastry and the cream
 165 g Caster Sugar
 40 g Water
 1 Vanilla Bean (optional)
 Pinch of Flakey Sea Salt
For the Hazelnut Sweet Pastry
 200 g Plain / All Purpose Flour
 70 g Icing / Powdered Sugar
 30 g Roasted Hazelnut PowderMade from the blanched hazelnuts in the praline
 1 g Sea Salt
 100 g Unsalted Butter, Cold + Cubed
 45 g Whole Eggs
For the Egg Wash
 40 g Egg Yolk
 10 g Double / Heavy Cream
For the Hazelnut Cream
 100 g Unsalted Butter, Very Soft
 100 g Icing Sugar / Powdered Sugar
 75 g Whole Eggs
 100 g Roasted Hazelnut PowderMade from the blanched hazelnuts in the praline
 12 g Cornflour / Cornstarch
For the Pailleté Feuilletine
 50 g Unsalted Butter, Soft
 50 g Icing Sugar / Powdered Sugar
 50 g Egg Whites
 50 g Plain Flour / All Purpose Flour
Feuilletine Praline Crunch
 140 g Hazelnut Praline
 40 g Milk Chocolate, Melted & Warm
 70 g PailletĂ© Feuilletine
 Pinch of Sea Salt Flakes
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Method


Mascarpone Whipped Ganache
1

In a small bowl, stir together the powdered gelatin and water. Set it aside to bloom for 5 minutes.

2

Meanwhile in a tall measuring jug, add the white chocolate, mascarpone and vanilla. 

3

Pour the cream into a medium saucepan and place it over medium heat. Stir occasionally until it is gently simmering, then remove it from the heat and scoop in the bloomed gelatin. Stir through until it has completely dissolved.

4

Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate mixture and let it sit for 2 minutes.

5

Blend until smooth with a hand blender, then cover the surface with cling film and refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours, or ideally overnight.

Vanilla Hazelnut Praline
6

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F Non-Fan Assisted. Place the hazelnuts onto a tray and bake for around 20-25 minutes or until a golden colour. If your hazelnuts have skins on, bake them for 10 minutes, before removing them from the oven and wrapping them in a tea towel. Let them sit before rubbing them vigorously to remove the skins. Place the peeled hazelnuts back onto the tray and bake for a further 5-10 minutes or until golden.

7

Remove the hazelnuts from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Weigh 150g of the roasted hazelnuts, place them into a food processor and briefly blend to a powder. Set these powdered hazelnuts aside for the hazelnut cream (100g) and pastry (30g). You should have 250g of hazelnuts left for the praline. 

8

Into a medium saucepan, add the water and sugar. Place it on a medium heat and cook it until it is boiling, and reaches a temperature of 116C/240F.

9

Immediately pour in the 250g of roasted hazelnuts (and a scraped vanilla pod if using) and continue to cook, stirring constantly. Initially the sugar will crystalise and go very grainy, but as you continue to cook, it will turn into a deep caramel.

10

Once you have a deep caramel that has coated the nuts, quickly remove them from the pan so they don’t burn, and pour them onto a tray lined with a silicon mat. Sprinkle a good pinch of flaked sea salt on top and let them cool for 30 minutes at room temperature.

11

Once solidified, break the praline into pieces and place it into a high powered food processor and blend to a very smooth paste. It will take a few minutes.

12

Pour this into a container and set aside.

Hazelnut Sweet Pastry
13

Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, sift in the flour and icing sugar to get rid of any lumps, then add the roasted hazelnut powder on top. 

14

Add in the butter, and mix on a low speed until the mixture resembles a sandy consistency and there are no large lumps of butter. It will take around 2 minutes.

15

Pour in the eggs and keep mixing on a low speed until it start to clump together slightly. Remove the beater and use your hands to squeeze the mixture together to form one cohesive lump of dough.

16

Gently knead it on the work surface briefly until the dough is smooth. Place this into the freezer for 30 minutes.

17

Once chilled, cut the dough into two separate pieces, and roll each piece of dough in between two silicon mats (or two sheets of parchment paper) until it is relatively thin.

18

Working quickly, peel the top silicon mat off of the dough. Press the tart rings firmly into the dough (here we are using 4” perforated tart rings), lift them up, and transfer them to a perforated tray lined with a perforated baking mat. The dough should be cold enough that it attaches to the ring as you lift it up. 

19

Using a ruler and a sharp knife, cut 4 long strips of dough. If at any point you find the dough is too soft, place it back into the freezer for 10 minutes then carry on. 

20

Take a strip of dough and place it inside the tart ring. Use your fingers to gently press together this strip of dough, against the base of the tart. Repeat this with the remaining tarts, then place them into the freezer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 175C/350F Non-Fan Assisted. 

Hazelnut Cream
21

Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the soft butter and sift in the icing/powdered sugar. Beat for 1-2 minutes until smooth.

22

Add in the eggs and beat again for 30 seconds, it might not look completely smooth but scrape down the bowl as best as possible to combine the mixture.

23

Finally, tip in the roasted hazelnut powder and cornstarch. Mix for 15-30 seconds till smooth.

24

Add this into a piping bag and set it to one side.

Baking
25

Once chilled, use a knife to trim off the excess pastry around the top of the tart shell, and bake the tarts for 14 minutes.

26

Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool before mixing together the ingredients for the egg wash and brushing this over the tart. 

27

Lower the oven temperature to 140C/285F and bake for 10 minutes.

28

Remove them from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes, before piping in an even layer of the hazelnut cream. Don’t overfill the tarts, as the cream will puff up as it bakes.

29

Place the tarts back in the oven and bake for a further 10-15 minutes - the pastry should be golden and the hazelnut cream slightly springy to the touch. Remove the tarts from the oven to cool for 30 minutes.

Pailleté Feuilletine
30

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F Non-fan assisted.

31

Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter and sifted icing sugar. Beat for 1 minute, until smooth.

32

Next, tip in the egg whites and beat again. This won’t combine too well so just mix for around 30 seconds.

33

Tip in the flour and beat for 30 seconds to form a smooth paste ensuring there are no lumps of butter.

34

Spread the mixture as thin as possible onto a silicon mat. You will need to bake this in two batches.

35

Place it into the oven and bake for around 10 minutes or until it is an even golden colour. Let it cool for 5 minutes then crush it into small pieces. Repeat with the second batch. Set these to one side. 

Feuilletine Praline Crunch
36

Into a bowl, combine all the ingredients and stir them together to form a thick paste. 

Decoration
37

Spread the praline crunch evenly across the top of the tarts to create a smooth layer.

38

Remove the mascarpone cream from the fridge and whisk it using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on a medium speed, until it holds a medium/stiff peak. Do not over whip it. 

39

Add this into a piping bag fitted with a St Honore nozzle.

40

Pipe lines across the top of the tart, leaving a gap in between each one. Dust these lines very lightly with vanilla powder or cocoa powder. Then fill in the gaps you left by piping in more lines. Pipe some more praline in between the tarts and then they are ready to serve.

Ingredients

For the Mascarpone Whipped Ganache
 3 g Powdered Gelatin + 18g Cold Water
 300 g Double / Heavy Cream
 75 g White Chocolate
 100 g Mascarpone
 ½ tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
For the Vanilla Hazelnut Praline
 400 g Blanched HazelnutsYou will need some of the hazelnuts for the pastry and the cream
 165 g Caster Sugar
 40 g Water
 1 Vanilla Bean (optional)
 Pinch of Flakey Sea Salt
For the Hazelnut Sweet Pastry
 200 g Plain / All Purpose Flour
 70 g Icing / Powdered Sugar
 30 g Roasted Hazelnut PowderMade from the blanched hazelnuts in the praline
 1 g Sea Salt
 100 g Unsalted Butter, Cold + Cubed
 45 g Whole Eggs
For the Egg Wash
 40 g Egg Yolk
 10 g Double / Heavy Cream
For the Hazelnut Cream
 100 g Unsalted Butter, Very Soft
 100 g Icing Sugar / Powdered Sugar
 75 g Whole Eggs
 100 g Roasted Hazelnut PowderMade from the blanched hazelnuts in the praline
 12 g Cornflour / Cornstarch
For the Pailleté Feuilletine
 50 g Unsalted Butter, Soft
 50 g Icing Sugar / Powdered Sugar
 50 g Egg Whites
 50 g Plain Flour / All Purpose Flour
Feuilletine Praline Crunch
 140 g Hazelnut Praline
 40 g Milk Chocolate, Melted & Warm
 70 g PailletĂ© Feuilletine
 Pinch of Sea Salt Flakes
Shop the equipment

Directions

Mascarpone Whipped Ganache
1

In a small bowl, stir together the powdered gelatin and water. Set it aside to bloom for 5 minutes.

2

Meanwhile in a tall measuring jug, add the white chocolate, mascarpone and vanilla. 

3

Pour the cream into a medium saucepan and place it over medium heat. Stir occasionally until it is gently simmering, then remove it from the heat and scoop in the bloomed gelatin. Stir through until it has completely dissolved.

4

Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate mixture and let it sit for 2 minutes.

5

Blend until smooth with a hand blender, then cover the surface with cling film and refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours, or ideally overnight.

Vanilla Hazelnut Praline
6

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F Non-Fan Assisted. Place the hazelnuts onto a tray and bake for around 20-25 minutes or until a golden colour. If your hazelnuts have skins on, bake them for 10 minutes, before removing them from the oven and wrapping them in a tea towel. Let them sit before rubbing them vigorously to remove the skins. Place the peeled hazelnuts back onto the tray and bake for a further 5-10 minutes or until golden.

7

Remove the hazelnuts from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Weigh 150g of the roasted hazelnuts, place them into a food processor and briefly blend to a powder. Set these powdered hazelnuts aside for the hazelnut cream (100g) and pastry (30g). You should have 250g of hazelnuts left for the praline. 

8

Into a medium saucepan, add the water and sugar. Place it on a medium heat and cook it until it is boiling, and reaches a temperature of 116C/240F.

9

Immediately pour in the 250g of roasted hazelnuts (and a scraped vanilla pod if using) and continue to cook, stirring constantly. Initially the sugar will crystalise and go very grainy, but as you continue to cook, it will turn into a deep caramel.

10

Once you have a deep caramel that has coated the nuts, quickly remove them from the pan so they don’t burn, and pour them onto a tray lined with a silicon mat. Sprinkle a good pinch of flaked sea salt on top and let them cool for 30 minutes at room temperature.

11

Once solidified, break the praline into pieces and place it into a high powered food processor and blend to a very smooth paste. It will take a few minutes.

12

Pour this into a container and set aside.

Hazelnut Sweet Pastry
13

Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, sift in the flour and icing sugar to get rid of any lumps, then add the roasted hazelnut powder on top. 

14

Add in the butter, and mix on a low speed until the mixture resembles a sandy consistency and there are no large lumps of butter. It will take around 2 minutes.

15

Pour in the eggs and keep mixing on a low speed until it start to clump together slightly. Remove the beater and use your hands to squeeze the mixture together to form one cohesive lump of dough.

16

Gently knead it on the work surface briefly until the dough is smooth. Place this into the freezer for 30 minutes.

17

Once chilled, cut the dough into two separate pieces, and roll each piece of dough in between two silicon mats (or two sheets of parchment paper) until it is relatively thin.

18

Working quickly, peel the top silicon mat off of the dough. Press the tart rings firmly into the dough (here we are using 4” perforated tart rings), lift them up, and transfer them to a perforated tray lined with a perforated baking mat. The dough should be cold enough that it attaches to the ring as you lift it up. 

19

Using a ruler and a sharp knife, cut 4 long strips of dough. If at any point you find the dough is too soft, place it back into the freezer for 10 minutes then carry on. 

20

Take a strip of dough and place it inside the tart ring. Use your fingers to gently press together this strip of dough, against the base of the tart. Repeat this with the remaining tarts, then place them into the freezer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 175C/350F Non-Fan Assisted. 

Hazelnut Cream
21

Into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the soft butter and sift in the icing/powdered sugar. Beat for 1-2 minutes until smooth.

22

Add in the eggs and beat again for 30 seconds, it might not look completely smooth but scrape down the bowl as best as possible to combine the mixture.

23

Finally, tip in the roasted hazelnut powder and cornstarch. Mix for 15-30 seconds till smooth.

24

Add this into a piping bag and set it to one side.

Baking
25

Once chilled, use a knife to trim off the excess pastry around the top of the tart shell, and bake the tarts for 14 minutes.

26

Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool before mixing together the ingredients for the egg wash and brushing this over the tart. 

27

Lower the oven temperature to 140C/285F and bake for 10 minutes.

28

Remove them from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes, before piping in an even layer of the hazelnut cream. Don’t overfill the tarts, as the cream will puff up as it bakes.

29

Place the tarts back in the oven and bake for a further 10-15 minutes - the pastry should be golden and the hazelnut cream slightly springy to the touch. Remove the tarts from the oven to cool for 30 minutes.

Pailleté Feuilletine
30

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F Non-fan assisted.

31

Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter and sifted icing sugar. Beat for 1 minute, until smooth.

32

Next, tip in the egg whites and beat again. This won’t combine too well so just mix for around 30 seconds.

33

Tip in the flour and beat for 30 seconds to form a smooth paste ensuring there are no lumps of butter.

34

Spread the mixture as thin as possible onto a silicon mat. You will need to bake this in two batches.

35

Place it into the oven and bake for around 10 minutes or until it is an even golden colour. Let it cool for 5 minutes then crush it into small pieces. Repeat with the second batch. Set these to one side. 

Feuilletine Praline Crunch
36

Into a bowl, combine all the ingredients and stir them together to form a thick paste. 

Decoration
37

Spread the praline crunch evenly across the top of the tarts to create a smooth layer.

38

Remove the mascarpone cream from the fridge and whisk it using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on a medium speed, until it holds a medium/stiff peak. Do not over whip it. 

39

Add this into a piping bag fitted with a St Honore nozzle.

40

Pipe lines across the top of the tart, leaving a gap in between each one. Dust these lines very lightly with vanilla powder or cocoa powder. Then fill in the gaps you left by piping in more lines. Pipe some more praline in between the tarts and then they are ready to serve.

Notes

Hazelnut Praline Tart