No-Bake S'mores Tart

With these temperatures, it takes a lot of courage (or a baker’s willpower that’s thermometer-proof) to face a turned-on oven. Even so, so as not to discourage those who refuse to forgo a luscious dessert despite the summer heat, today I bring you this Cake S’mores, a recipe that doesn't require an oven, but which will hardly find a rival among those that do.

The Anglo-Saxon term “s’more” is the contraction of the expression “some more” (“a little more”) and refers to a typical North American sweet that consists of a marshmallow – or marshmallow – toasted directly over a campfire (it's very common on camping nights) and placed between two cookies and a chocolate bar, which also melts when it comes into contact with the heat of the marshmallow semi-melted. So, apparently one of these is usually not enough, so the procedure is usually repeated over and over until each person is completely satisfied (or they run out of marshmallows). And that's where its name comes from.

Even though this recipe is presented as a cake, it maintains the principles and basic ingredients of the s’mores traditional: cookie, chocolate and marshmallows fluxes, this time in the form of meringue, which ends, as tradition dictates, toasted over a flame (from the blowtorch, of course). That said, we’ll serve this tart cold, so success is guaranteed (as if after everything above there were still any doubt…). And since you never know, instead of making a single tart to serve in slices, we can also go for individual tartlets. In both cases, Le Creuset ceramic tart dishes are simply impeccable as well as gorgeous, perfect for serving our creations straight to the table without unmolding (and in the case of individual tartlets, even to eat them right in the same dish!).

KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer, T&G wood board and Le Creuset ceramic baking dish

Ingredients (for 1 large cake or 6 individual tartlets)

All the ingredients must be at room temperature, unless otherwise indicated .

For the crunchy cookie base:

• 250 g of cookies (type Digestive), finely crushed
• 100 g unsalted butter, melted
• ¼ teaspoon of salt

For the chocolate filling:

• 400 g of good-quality dark chocolate (min. 50% cocoa)
• 350 ml heavy whipping cream (min. 35% fat)
• ¼ teaspoon of salt

For the marshmallow meringue:

• 150 g of white sugar
• 80 ml of maple syrup
• 45 ml of cold water
• 2 large egg whites (60–65 g approx.)
• ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar (optional)*
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

«1 tablespoon= 15 ml / 1 teaspoon = 5 ml«

Preparation

From the crunchy cookie base

1. In a wide bowl, we mix the cookies, finely crushed, together with the melted butter until fully combined.
2. Next, spread the previous mixture over the base and sides (right up to the edge) of a 24 cm diameter round tart pan (or divide it among 6 round pans 11 cm in diameter if making individual desserts) – in both cases, I used Le Creuset ceramic tart pans. Using a glass or the back of a spoon, press the cookie crust firmly against the pan so it’s as compact as possible without cracking.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the freezer.

Of the chocolate filling (ganache)

4. While the base of our cake sets, we chop the chocolate into small pieces (the smaller, the better) and set it aside in a heatproof bowl.
5. In a saucepan mediano, we bring the heavy cream to a boil over medium heat.
6. Once it comes to a boil, pour the cream immediately over the chopped chocolate, add the salt, and let it sit without stirring for a couple of minutes.
7. With a spatula we gently stir until all the ingredients are completely combined and the mixture has a smooth, uniform, glossy texture. It is important to use gentle, folding motions to avoid incorporating air into the chocolate ganache so that no bubbles form, as they would get trapped inside as it sets.
8. Then remove the pan (or pans) with its crunchy cookie crust from the freezer, fill it with the previous mixture, smooth the surface with a spatula, and place it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours if you’ve opted for a single cake (2 hours for individual tartlets). In any case, if time allows, it’s even better to let it chill overnight.

From the meringue of marshmallows

9. As the time to enjoy our S’mores cake approaches, we'll start preparing the meringue of marshmallows (this step may take about 20-25 minutes). In a medium, fairly deep saucepan, place the sugar, maple syrup, and water and combine with a whisk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring and without taking your eyes off it (the mixture will start to bubble and the bubbles will rise very quickly, so if you see it might boil over, lower the heat) until you reach a syrup at the "soft-ball" stage, that is, about 115-117ºC on a kitchen thermometer (which can take up to 10 minutes)**. When the syrup is around 100-110ºC, its temperature will no longer rise as quickly as at the beginning, but it will keep gaining heat little by little until it reaches the point we want, so be patient. Then remove it from the heat and set it aside while it cools a little. WARNING: You can't be too careful when making this kind of sugar mixture at these temperatures, so be extremely careful about potential splashes.
10. Meanwhile, in a large bowl (it can be the bowl of our stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment) add the egg whites and the cream of tartar (if using) and start whipping them, initially at medium speed, until they begin to foam. Then increase to high speed and continue whipping until they reach a thicker consistency, but still soft.
11. Next, begin incorporating the syrup we had set aside (step 9) without stopping whisking, now back to medium speed, adding it gradually in a thin stream directly over the egg whites (avoid letting the syrup come into contact with the bowl so it doesn’t harden).
12. Once all the syrup has been added, add the vanilla extract, increase the speed, and continue whipping the mixture until it reaches a firmer consistency (it should hold its shape without any trouble when the bowl is turned upside down). The outside of the bowl will still be warm to the touch.
13. Finally, we remove the cakes from the refrigerator and drop a generous amount of our meringue of marshmallows (lots and lots of meringue!) over the already set chocolate filling and spread it very gently in circular motions with the help of a spatula or the back of a spoon. If we're feeling a bit more artistic, we can even reach for the piping bag.
14. To finish, and just before serving, we toast the surface of the meringue with a kitchen blowtorch and that's it!

Keeps refrigerated for about 3 days.

WMF stainless steel pot and Le Creuset ceramic mold

Notes

• *Cream of tartar is used to stabilize egg whites beaten to stiff peaks so they stay firm without losing volume over time. It's not essential, but it's very helpful. It can be substituted with a few drops of lemon juice.
• **If we don’t have a candy thermometer, we can drop a few drops of the syrup after a few minutes into a glass of cold water. We’ve reached the soft-ball stage if we can shape them with our fingertips without them falling apart. If it ends up too hard (syrup firms up very quickly), we can add a little more water to the mixture and test again until we reach the right stage.
• An ultra-fast alternative (although somewhat less interesting in my opinion) to the meringue of marshmallows would be to skip this step altogether and cover all the chocolate filling, once set, with marshmallows (preferably white) – for a single large tart it’s better if they’re large; a bit smaller if we opt for individual tartlets, although this is a personal choice. We would just need to lightly torch the surface of the marshmallows with a kitchen torch and that’s it. I insist, the meringue of marshmallows it has no equal, but if push comes to shove…
• The meringue of marshmallows also sold already prepared (commonly known as “fluff”). The homemade version is by far preferable, especially the one I’m proposing, since instead of adding light corn syrup (which is the most common, but also quite a bit less healthy) I’ve opted for maple syrup which, although it adds a very subtle hint of its characteristic flavor (delicious, in any case), is much more natural. The meringue can be stored in an airtight glass container, always refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.
• To crush the cookies, we can put them in a zip-top bag and run a rolling pin over it until they’re completely broken down. We can also chop them in a blender (always using short pulses to prevent a cookie paste from forming from the heat) or even in a mortar and pestle.
• When whipping egg whites (always at room temperature), we must make sure that the utensils we use — both the bowl and the whisk — are completely free of any trace of fat; otherwise, we would hardly achieve our goal.

All in all, an incredibly soft bite, packed with flavor and full of textures, each more irresistible than the last. And you—will you be able to eat just one piece, or will you want a little more?