There’s something about Pittsburgh that makes people want to leave. Ask anyone who has lived here for a length of time (apart from just being here for college) and they’ll surely have stories of how many friends left town in search of their fortunes. Not that I blame them, really - I do love my city, but unless one’s occupation matches a handful of very specific fields, finding a gratifying career here can be pretty tough. I will probably be joining the expatriate lot in the not-too-distant future, but meanwhile, I have gotten used to the slow cycles of making new friends, watching them leave, and eventually making more.
Last Saturday, an old friend brought over several new ones to play a sort of nostalgic game that involved rolling dice and peering at slips of paper. For this, I made Alice Medrich’s Warm Mocha Tart from Bittersweet. I’ve made the tart several times before, as it’s terrifically good on top of being extremely easy. The crust requires no rolling, the inside has a deep, dark chocolate flavor but does this with cocoa powder so there’s no need to chop chocolate, and the whole process takes less than an hour, including prep time. The result is a smooth and ganache-like filling on top of a decadently buttery crust. The only change I made was to add a hint of cinnamon, because there just aren’t many groups of friends that are as happy in one place as coffee, chocolate, and cinnamon, don’t you think?
Recipe after the jump…