Desserts - Chocolate Praline Tart

Tart Shell:
3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks) softened
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar

Praline-Chocolate Filling:
2 bars (3 oz. each) Newman's Own Organic Chocolate (Sweet Dark Chocolate or Sweet Dark Chocolate with Orange Oil), broken into pieces.
3/4 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 bag (9 1/4 oz.) caramels, unwrapped
1 1/2 cups pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Prepare Tart Shell: Pulse together all tart shell ingredients in a food processor until they form moist crumbs. Sprinkle crumbs in 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom and press together to form crust on bottom and up sides; prick dough all over with fork. Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice. Bake for 25 minutes; remove foil and weights and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden, pressing crust with back of spoon if it puffs and loosely covering dark spots with foil.

Prepare Praline-Chocolate Filling: Combine chocolate and 1/4 cup cream in 1-quart saucepan. Melt, stirring frequently over medium-low heat. Pour chocolate mixture, reserving 2 tablespoons, in bottom of cooled crust; spread evenly. Chill 20 minutes (chill reserved 2 tablespoons also).

In 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, heat caramels and remaining 1/2-cup cream until melted and smooth, stirring occasionally. Stir in pecans and quickly pour over chocolate layer; spread evenly.

In 1-quart saucepan, over low heat, heat reserved chocolate mixture 1 to 2 minutes, stirring until melted, or microwave 10 seconds. Using a fork, drizzle in zigzag pattern over top of tart. Chill at least 1 hour. Store in refrigerator.

Makes 24 servings.