Flour's Milky Way Tart

This, people, was an amazing tart.  Flour comes through again!  With oozy, gooey caramel, delicious chocolate mousse, and a crispy sweet tart crust, this one was a winner for everyone.  It received a perfect 10 from the whole family, including my parents.  I made this for my mom's birthday, and we loved it.  The way I made this each slice, 1/16 of the total, was 335 calories.  I did make a few changes to the recipe, and I am glad I did.  I used bittersweet chocolate rather than milk chocolate, and we all felt like the less sweet mousse was awesome.

See that caramel seeping out on the side there?  Yeah, it's delicious :).  Anyway, here is the recipe for this tart, which is really nice because you make everything the day before, then just spend a few minutes assembling it.

1 recipe Pate Sucree, baked in a tart shell

5 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 c heavy cream

1 t cocoa powder

1 dash of salt

3/4 c sugar

1/3 c water

3/4 c heavy cream

2 T unsalted butter

1/8 t salt

2 t vanilla

1 oz bittersweet chocolate, shaved into curls (mine didn't work great :))

Melt the chocolate with the cream in the microwave, stirring very frequently to prevent burning.  Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve, stir in the salt, and cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours, preferably overnight.

Place the sugar and water in a deep saucepan, and let cook over high heat without touching it for about 3-4 minutes, while the sugar caramelizes.  As it thickens and begins to darken, swirl the pan very gently to allow the darker color to mix with the lighter syrup on top.  Continue to cook until a deep amber, but don't overcook!  Burnt sugar is gross :).

Reduce the heat to low, slowly add the cream, and stir constantly but carefully while you pour it in, then continue to whisk and turn the heat to medium.  Whisk in the butter, salt and vanilla when the cream and sugar come together and soften again.  Remove from the heat, pour it into a container and refrigerate at least four hours, or more.

Spread about 3/4 of the caramel filling in the bottom of the tart shell.  Using a stand mixer, whip the chocolate cream mixture until it holds soft peaks.  Mound the mousse in the shell, and spread it evenly over the caramel.  Drizzle the remaining caramel over the top of the mousse, then top with the curls.  Chill before serving.