Have-No-Fear Torte

I have a sweet tooth. It's ridiculous, really - just ask my husband. For me, no dinner is complete without a little something sweet to top it off. I always save room for dessert! My favorite kind of end-of-dinner sweet is a little bit of GOOD chocolate... sometimes it's a stand-alone, and sometimes it's in cookies or bars, but chocolate is a must. This trait seems to run in my family. Just ask my mom about her dessert preferences and she'll tell you that if she could never eat ice cream again she would not miss it (now, I wouldn't go that far), but put a smooth, chocolately little torte in front of her and she would simply have to have a taste. In fact, I think that it's my mom's longstanding love of tortes that made me want to tackle this Chocolate Caramel Truffle Torte recipe. Of course, when I actually started collecting ingredients, I got nervous. Tortes are no kid's cupcakes - they're classy. They're a big deal dessert! What if I botch it? But here's what I discovered: tortes aren't that hard to make. They're luscious and rich and delicious, but you can make them yourself at home! Who knew I could be that kind of decadent chef? Well, you can too.

To make your Chocolate Caramel Truffle Torte, begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Then, chop your pecans into fine pieces.

Combine the chopped pecans with the sugar and melted butter.

When the crust ingredients are thoroughly mixed, press the crust into your pan. Ideally, you would use tart pan with removable bottom. Or, if you don't have one of those, you can use a cheesecake pan like I did. Regardless, press the crust along the bottom and about an inch up the side.

Place the pan in the oven and bake it for 15-18 minutes. When it's golden brown, remove the crust from the oven and allow it to cool completely.

In the meantime, chop up your semi-sweet chocolate (or get your chocolate chips out).

Heat two cups of heavy whipping cream until it just comes to a boil, then add your chocolate.

Stir the chocolate in until it's rich and creamy - thoroughly combined.

Then, pour the chocolate mixture into the cooled crust. Refrigerate for at least two hours so the torte can filling can set.

Twenty minutes before you're ready to serve the torte (or earlier if you want to refrigerate and save for later), combine the brown and white sugar, light corn syrup and butter in a sauce pan.

Cook the caramel ingredients on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until it comes to a full boil.

Remove the sauce pan from heat and allow it to cool for five minutes. Then add the whipping cream.

Mix together completely.

When the torte has cooled completely, you can remove it from the pan. Since I refrigerated my torte overnight, I had covered it with plastic wrap. I noticed in the morning that little drops of condensation had formed on the plastic, and when a few dropped to the torte, the chocolate consistency changed there. Though it's something I would try to remedy next time, it's nothing that a little whipped cream and caramel sauce can't cover!

Finally, slice your torte with a sharp knife (it will stick a little, so you may want to wipe the knife off before each cut). Add whipped cream and drizzle with warm caramel sauce. This Chocolate Caramel Truffle Torte is a decadent dessert you'll be proud to claim as your own!

Try making Chocolate Caramel Truffle Torte - you can do it! And once you have, rate and review the recipe on LandOLakes.com.

Coming up next, Becky will share one of Land O'Lakes most requested cookie recipes.

Amanda is paid to write for the Land O’Lakes Recipe Buzz™ Blog.