How to Prevent Hazelnut From Going Dry in Your Pie: the 5 Tips for the Perfect, Soft Filling!

When you prepare a chocolate tart it often happens that the hazelnut cream inside hardens, ruining our preparation. However, there are various ways to keep it creamy, preventing it from drying out during cooking. These are a few simple tips, useful for the preparation of tarts, biscuits or desserts filled with hazelnut spread cream, so as to obtain a perfect final result: put the tart in the freezer before cooking, cover it with aluminum foil or baking paper in cooking and other simple tricks to obtain a creamy and melting filling.

Tricks to Keep Hazelnut Cream in Our Tart From Hardening

Before explaining step by step how to make a perfect hazelnut cream tart, so loved by not only children, we will reveal the secrets to prevent the spread from hardening during cooking: the shortcrust pastry base must not be too thick; put the tart in the freezer for at least half an hour before baking it; cook in the oven covering the tart with aluminum foil and finishing cooking without foil, so that the shortcrust pastry strips brown well. You can also use the same advice for preparing biscuits filled with hazelnut cream.

To make the perfect hazelnut cream tart you will need these ingredients: 330 grams of 00 flour, 120 grams of sugar, 120 grams of butter, 1 whole egg, 1 egg yolk, 4 grams of baking powder and 200 grams of hazelnut cream for the filling.

Start by preparing the shortcrust pastry: pour the diced butter into the flour, add the yeast and work with the help of your hands until you obtain a sandy dough. Add the sugar and mix all the ingredients well. Also add the eggs and knead until you obtain a compact dough. Divide the dough into two parts (one for the bottom of the tart and one for the strips) and roll it out between two sheets of baking paper. Let it rest in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, then cover the buttered cake pan with a sheet of shortcrust pastry.

Melt the spreadable hazelnut cream in a bain-marie: this way you'll be able to spread it more easily. Pour it onto the shortcrust pastry base. Transfer the cake pan to the freezer to harden the spread, so it won't dry out during cooking. Meanwhile, cut the strips and then arrange them, leaving little space between one and the other.

Cover the tart with baking paper and bake at 356°F/180°C for about 30 minutes. Remove the baking paper for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Enjoy your tart with super creamy hazelnut cream.

Bonus Tips for Keeping the Hazelnut Cream Soft in Your Desserts

Another useful tip for keeping the hazelnut cream soft is blind cooking, that is, cooking the base of the tart without filling, covered with a sheet of baking paper and pulses, so as to fill it with the hazelnut cream before serving it.

However, in regards to cakes, muffins or plum cakes, you can place teaspoons of hazelnut cream spread on baking paper and keep them in the freezer for at least 20 minutes. Then simply detach the frozen pieces of hazelnut cream and place them in the center of the dough. Alternatively you can cook your desserts, let them cool, and fill them with hazelnut cream after cooking.