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s'mores brownie tart
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Brown Butter S'mores Brownie Tart

If you're a s'mores fan, you'll love this tart! There's crisp, brown butter pastry, a fudgy chocolate brownie filling & torched Italian meringue on top that's reminiscent of a campfire marshmallow.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time1 hour
Chilling Time4 hours
Total Time6 hours
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 10 People
Author: Ben Racey

Equipment

  • 9" Tart Case
  • Baking Beans/Rice
  • Digital Food Probe
  • Electric Hand Mixer
  • Mixing Bowls
  • Piping Bag
  • Saucepans
  • Veg Peeler
  • Blowtorch

Ingredients

Brown Butter Pastry

  • 190 g Unsalted Butter
  • 1 tsp Toasted Milk Powder (See Notes)
  • 250 g Plain Flour
  • 80 g Icing Sugar
  • ½ tsp Table Salt
  • 45 g Egg Yolks
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Paste
  • 1 tbsp Ice Cold Water
  • 1 Egg Yolk (For Brushing On Pastry)

Brownie Filling

  • 140 g Dark Chocolate (72% Is Best!)
  • 50 g Vegetable Oil
  • 20 g Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder
  • ¼ tsp Sea Salt
  • 125 g Unsalted Butter
  • 2 Large Eggs (See Notes)
  • 1 Egg Yolk
  • 150 g Caster Sugar
  • 75 g Dark Brown Sugar
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 75 g Plain Flour

Italian Meringue

  • 180 g Egg Whites (See Notes)
  • ½ tsp Cream Of Tartar
  • 360 g Caster Sugar
  • 110 g Water

Instructions

Brown Butter Pastry

  • Start by browning the butter. To do this, chop the butter into evenly sized pieces then place into a medium saucepan. Place over a medium heat & allow to melt, stirring regularly with a spatula. Keep cooking, until the butter starts to foam, smells nutty & you can see that the milk solids in the bottom of the pan have turned golden brown.
  • As soon as the butter has browned, take the pan off the heat, stir in the toasted milk powder (if using) then transfer the brown butter to a bowl & leave to cool to room temperature.
  • Once the butter is cool, pour it into a container that has been lined with a double layer of clingfilm then chill in the fridge until completely set. This will take a couple of hours.
  • Next, sift the flour, icing sugar & salt into a mixing bowl then whisk to combine. Transfer the chilled butter to a chopping board, cut into 1 cm cubes, add into the flour then rub in with your fingers until the mix resembles breadcrumbs with some large pieces of butter still visible.
  • Add the yolks & vanilla paste into a small bowl, mix together then add into the flour, along with the cold water.
  • Mix until the pastry starts to come together then tip out onto a clean work surface & gently knead until you have a smooth dough (be careful not to overwork). Flatten the pastry into a disc then wrap in clingfilm & chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
  • Next, place the chilled pastry onto a lightly floured work surface & roll out into a circle with a thickness of 3mm-4mm. The pastry should be about an inch wider than your tin.
    The pastry needs to be at least an inch wider than your tart case. I like to let the pastry sit out at room temperature for 20 minutes or so before rolling, as it will become more pliable & easier to work with.
  • Pick the pastry up using a rolling pin, drape over the tart tin & carefully mould into the tin. Using some of the overhanging pastry, rolled into a ball to press the pastry into the sides of the tin works best.
    Don't worry about trimming the excess pastry off, we'll be doing this after blind baking.
  • Prick the base with a fork then chill the pastry case in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours but overnight is best.

Blind Baking

  • Preheat an oven to 190°c/170°c fan (374°f/338°f).
  • Take a large piece of baking parchment, scrunch it up then place inside your pastry case. Fill the parchment with baking beans (or raw rice) then bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the top of the pastry case is starting to turn golden brown & the edges have set.
    Make sure to bake the tart on a tray, to catch any excess pastry. Be careful not to remove the parchment too early, as this can cause the pastry to tear.
  • Remove the baking beans & parchment & return the case to the oven & cook until the pastry is a light golden brown all over. This will take 5-10 minutes.
  • Once baked, brush the base of the pastry case with the egg yolk then set to one side, to cool.
    The excess heat in the pastry will set the egg yolk.
  • Once cool, use a veg peeler to trim the sides of the pastry case level with the top of the tin. Discard any excess pastry.
    If you're going to be making the filling straight away, I'd leave the oven on. If not, turn it back on just before making the filling.

Brownie Filling

  • Turn the oven's temperature down to 180°c/160°c fan (356°f/320°f).
  • Chop the chocolate into small pieces then place into a mixing bowl with the vegetable oil, cocoa powder & salt. Set this to one side.
  • Chop the butter into evenly sized pieces, add into a large saucepan then cook over a medium heat, until browned. As soon as the butter is ready, pour it over the chocolate, leave to stand for 1 minute then stir until melted.
  • Add the eggs & both of the sugars into a large mixing bowl then whisk with an electric hand mixer until pale & fluffy. This will take 3-4 minutes & there should be a visible trail left on top when you lift the whisks out (this is the ribbon stage).
  • Next, gradually pour the melted chocolate into the eggs whilst whisking on a medium-low speed. Once all of the chocolate has been added, give the bowl a quick scrape down with a spatula then whisk again briefly.
  • To finish the batter, sift in the plain flour then fold in with a spatula until just combined.
  • Tip the brownie batter into the tart case, use a palette knife to spread into an even layer then bake for 20-25 minutes until the edges are set but the middle still has a slight wobble.
  • Once cooked, let the tart cool completely then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Italian Meringue

  • Take the tart out of the tin & place onto a serving board. Leave to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or so before serving. Make the meringue in the meantime.
  • Add the egg whites & cream of tartar into the bowl of a stand mixer then set to one side.
    Make sure that your bowl is clean & dry!
  • Next, add the sugar & water into a medium saucepan, set over a medium-high heat & bring to the boil (without stirring!). Continue cooking the syrup until it reaches 121°c/249°f.
    If there are any grains of sugar on the side of the pan, use a pastry brush dipped in cold water to dissolve it.
  • When the syrup reaches 115°c/240°f, start whisking the egg whites on a medium-high speed, until they reach soft peaks. This will take 2-3 minutes.
  • Once the syrup has reached 121°c/249°f, turn your mixer down to a medium speed then carefully pour the syrup into egg whites, in a thin, slow stream.
    It's best to pour the syrup down the side of the bowl, so that it doesn't hit the whisk & go everywhere!
  • Continue whisking the meringue on a medium-high speed until it has cooled, reached stiff peaks & is glossy. This will take 5-10 minutes.
  • Top the tart with the Italian meringue, using a spatula to create lots of peaks on top then use a blowtorch to toast the meringue all over.
  • Use a large knife to cut the tart into pieces then serve! For clean slices, wipe the knife clean between cuts.

Notes

1. To Cook In An Aga - Blind bake the tart on the bottom set of runners in the roasting oven. Bake the filling in the baking oven, on the bottom set of runners. Use the boiling plate to brown the butter for the pastry & filling and to make the syrup for the Italian meringue.
2. Toasted Milk Powder - To give the pastry extra brown butter flavour, we're adding a teaspoon of toasted milk powder into the brown butter. This is optional though! For a full guide to making this, take a look at our toasted milk powder guide.
3. Dark Chocolate - I'd recommend using a dark chocolate with a cocoa content of 72%. A slightly lower or higher cocoa content is fine though.
4. Cocoa Powder - Make sure to use Dutch processed cocoa powder for these brownies. This can be found in most supermarkets. I use Green & Black’s.
5. Eggs - This recipe uses large eggs which tend to weigh around 50 grams out of the shell. We're using yolks in the pastry & brownie batter then using the leftover whites for the Italian meringue.
6. Storage - This tart needs to be stored in the fridge & is best eaten within 3 days. I'd recommend serving the tart at room temperature, so it's best to let it sit out of the fridge for 30 minutes or so before serving.