Chocolate Cookie Butter Tart

So I love Trader Joe's cookie butter. What I love more than their cookie butter is the cookie butter (speculoos) stuffed chocolate bars...like really LOVE! In fact I think I have a problem. They were so good I would always get a couple or three or four when I checked out, and then they ran out! The next month or so they had not gotten any in, so I did what any addict would do, I improvised. I bought a jar of the cookie butter and a bar of chocolate and dipped my chocolate bar in the cookie butter, perfectly healthy I assure you. I had to manage my cravings this way for a while until they finally got them back. Now I just rake them all in my basket with my arm and hope the cashier doesn't judge me for how many chocolate bars I am buying. So in honor of my favorite candy bar and to use the extra jar of cookie butter I bought in crisis, I decided to create this tart.

This definitely satisfies the chocolate/cookie butter craving, thank goodness so I don't have to buy so many chocolate bars. It's a crumbly chocolate shortbread crust that also has crushed speculoos cookies baked into it, with a creamy cookie butter middle, and topped with a smooth chocolate ganache. It's so good! It is rich so a little piece will do or you can pair it with a little whipped cream or maybe even a little ice cream.

Chocolate Cookie Butter Tart

Shortbread Crust
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup speculoos cookies, crushed (plus extra for garnish)
pinch of salt
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Middle Layer
Ingredients:
7 oz (1/2 jar) Trader Joe's crunchy cookie butter (that's it)

Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients:
3oz milk chocolate, chopped
2oz dark chocolate, chopped
3/8 cup heavy cream

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl mix together flour, cocoa powder, cookies, and salt.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or large bowl using a hand mixer) cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in egg yolk and vanilla.

3. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until it comes together.

4. Press into a 9in' tart pan and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prick the bottom of the crust several times with a fork. Bake in preheated oven for 18-22 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

6. While crust is cooling, start on ganache. Heat cream in saucepan over medium heat just until the sides start to bubble.

7. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let set 2 minutes, the whisk until smooth.

8. Spread cookie butter over cooled crust then spread ganache over cookie butter, sprinkle extra cookie crumbs as garnish. Refrigerate until ganache is set.

You can serve it at room temp like I did or with a bit of a chill on it, whatever you like.