Grasshopper Tart

The warm weather here in California has me dreaming of summer. Already I'm seeing shorts and tank tops everywhere as well as lines out the door for ice cream. So, with a craving for something sweet, cold, and refreshing, I decided to make this grasshopper tart.

With my love of all things mint chocolate chip, this was right up my alley. This tart is a remake of the very retro grasshopper pie, a slightly boozy mint chiffon pie with a chocolate cookie crust, based on the grasshopper cocktail (equal parts crème de menthe, crème de cacao, and fresh cream). What I really like about the tart version is the higher crust to filling ratio (when it comes to pies and tarts, I'm very much a crust person) and the addition of mini chocolate chips. This is definitely a wonderful treat for a hot day, or any day, if you love the combination of mint and chocolate.

Grasshopper Tart

adapted from The Boozy Baker

3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 3/4 cups heavy cream, divided
2 1/2 tsp gelatin
1/4 cup crème de menthe
2 tbsp crème de cacao
green food coloring (optional)
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

32 chocolate cookies*
5 tbsp melted butter, cooled

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Crush the cookies, either by hand or with a food processor. In a bowl, mix the cookie crumbs with the melted butter. Lightly spray the bottom of an 11-inch tart pan (with a removable bottom) with nonstick spray. Take the mixture and press it into the pan, making sure to press it up the sides of the pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, or until set. Remove from oven and let cool.

In a small saucepan, add 1/2 cup of the cream. Sprinkle the gelatin onto the cream and let stand for 5 minutes. While waiting, mix the egg yolks, sugar, and salt together until pale yellow. Set aside. Take the pan with the cream and gelatin and cook it over low heat until all the gelatin dissolves and the mixture is almost simmering (steam will begin rising), about 2 minutes. Then, take it off the heat.

Temper the egg yolk mix by whisking in a few tablespoons of the hot cream mix into the egg yolk mix. Once incorporated, pour and whisk the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan. Place the saucepan over low heat and while continuously stirring, cook for 3-5 minutes, until the mixture can coat the back of a spoon. Take it off the heat.

Pour the saucepan contents into a large bowl. Add the crème de menthe and crème de cacao. Now is the time to add the green food coloring if you decide to use it (for example, if your crème de menthe isn't already green). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge until thickened, but not totally set, about 20-30 minutes.

Remove the filling out from the fridge. In a separate bowl, take the remaining 1 1/4 cups whipping cream and use an electric mixer to beat it until there are soft peaks. Lighten the mint filling by mixing in half of the beaten cream. Take the remaining whipped cream and fold it into the mix. Then, fold in the mini chocolate chips. Dollop the filling onto the cooled tart crust and smooth it out. Then chill the tart for 6 hours, until set. (Btw, the tart tastes good frozen as well).

*If you can't find plain chocolate cookies, you can: 1) use chocolate sandwich cookies like Oreos, but just scrape off the filling, 2) if you really can't find any, you could always make your own chocolate cookies from scratch (which is actually what I did)