Why are you passionate about the Ada Jenkins Center? 

There are many things that I take for granted in my daily life: having enough to eat, a warm, safe place to sleep, the ability to pay my monthly bills and see a doctor when I am sick.  These should be things EVERYONE gets to experience.  This is not true for all people in Davidson and the surrounding communities. This is where the Ada Jenkins Center comes in! Their holistic approach to improve the lives of those in need in the community is essential to the strength of our community. 

The Ada Jenkins Center provides care and resources to those in need in Davidson and the surrounding communities.  In a society with increasing inequality between the have’s and the have not’s, Ada Jenkins provides much needed food, necessities, and medical services to ensure people’s basic needs are met. The center goes beyond filling material and social service gaps to empower those in need through education, financial skills, vocational training, and support for housing stability.   When time, money and options are limited, Ada Jenkins provides many essential resources in one place to help people get back on their feet, find the support they need and learn skills to become stronger and more resilient in the future. 

This is a decadent chocolate tart that looks very fancy but is easy to make.  I highly recommend making the shortbread crust (which makes it a little more difficult) but a premade, sweet pie crust would work.  I prefer bittersweet chocolate but if you like semi-sweet or milk chocolate better, go wild!

Crust (makes enough for 2, 8 inch tart shells)

½ lbs. unsalted butter (2 sticks) – very soft at room temperature

8 oz. sugar (1 cup)

½ teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon lemon zest

1 egg

12 oz. All-purpose flour (2 ¾ cups)

¼ teaspoon salt

1. Cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add the egg and mix until fully incorporated.
3. Mix in the vanilla and the lemon zest. 
4. With the mixer off, add all the flour and the salt.
5. Begin mixing slowly and then gradually increase the mixer speed until all of the flour is incorporated and you have a soft paste.
6. Form a pancake with the dough and wrap in plastic wrap.  The dough can be kept in the refrigerator for 5 days and in the freezer for up to a month.

Filling

¾ cup Heavy Cream

½ cup whole milk

8 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (the better the quality the better the tart!)

1 egg gently beaten

1. Chop chocolate into small pieces and put in a bowl (preferably stainless steal)
2. Carefully heat the milk and the cream together until simmering
3. Pour the cream mixture over the chocolate. DO NOT stir it for 10 minutes.
4. After 10 minutes gently stir the chocolate and cream mixture until well blended. Stir as little as possible to avoid incorporating too much air.
5. Gently stir in the egg

Assembly

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees to pre-bake the tart shell
2. Roll out short bread to about 1/4 inch thick (keep it as cold as possible but still warm enough to work with)
3. Place rolled dough into a tart pan or pie plate (I like the French tart pans with removable bottoms but any pie plate will work. However, the filling only makes approximately 2 ½ cups and will not fill an entire deep dish pie plate.)
4. Refrigerate the prepared tart shell for approximately 30 minutes.
5. Fill with pie weights (parchment or tin foil with dried beans, sugar or rice will work in place of weights). Make sure weights go all the way to the top.
6. Blind bake/ pre-bake the tart shell in 350-degree oven for 30-35 minutes until sides and bottom are golden brown.
7. Remove tart shell from oven, remove weights and allow it to cool until just warm to the touch.
8. Turn the oven down to 300 degrees
9. Pour in prepared tart filling.
10. Bake in 300-degree oven for 20-25 minutes until the filling is just set.  (tip: to test, gently shake the tart.  You are looking for a small jiggle and NO cracks in the surface.
11. Serve warm, at room temperature or cold with cinnamon or vanilla ice cream. (I like it best cold the next day!) The tart may be kept in the refrigerator for several days.