The turkeys have vanished and oversized pumpkins intended for carving are all but absent from the market bins.  Spiced Pumpkin Latte has been erased from the coffee shop blackboard and in its place, scribbled in candy cane letters, it now reads – Peppermint Mocha.  The fact that I have to take a breath when rattling off my coffee order to the barista would imply that I am one of those “complicated drink” people.  Not really.  It’s just that I want my humble little latte to be rich in flavor, easy on the low-fat milk, extra foam, and believe it or not – without caffeine.  I know, why bother, right?  Anyway, the other night, a friend and I decided to meet for an evening coffee.  With the barrage of Christmas lights, trees, and wreaths popping up everywhere, I was sporting a holiday mood.  Foregoing my “usual”, I ordered a Peppermint Mocha.  Of course, in fine-tuning it, I was still out of breathe when I had completed my order.  Nevertheless, I must say, my little drink was quite tasty and a welcome departure from my routine.
I have been wanting to post this recipe for a while now.  When it came to mind again yesterday, I made an immediate connection to my delicious peppermint latte from the other evening.  Take a warm mocha tart, adorn it with peppermint flavored whipped cream and a sprinkle of candy cane, and what do you have?  Why a Peppermint Mocha Latte you can eat with a fork.  And, right in time for the holidays!
The real reason I have been wanting to get this recipe out there to all of you is because I know that as much as you are going to love how satisfyingly good it is, its most impressive attribute is how darn easy it is to make.  Once you try it, you will be returning to it over and over again.  It comes together almost like a magic trick.  One, two, three, and the crust is in the oven.  On the stove, mix a few other ingredients which get poured right into the crust as it finishes baking.  Turn the oven off, and in 15 to 20 minutes, as if you were a magician, you have a truly decadent dessert.
Remembering the first time I made this tart, I blush with a bit of embarrassment.  When asked last minute to bring dessert to a friend’s dinner, I quickly scoured some books for a recipe that was quick and one for which I had the ingredients on hand.  Luckily, I stumbled upon this recipe.  I was a bit nervous as the hostess served a slice to everyone around the table.  Intermixed with their “oohs” and “aahs” was my own moaning approval.  Yes, I had impressed myself with my own dessert.  I may not have won the award that evening for most humble, but I did receive compliments from everyone.  In being honest, I can only take credit for the execution.  Alice Medrich gets all the credit for the recipe.  Proof once again that a truly impressive dessert does not need to be time consuming or complicated.
Certain recipes lend themselves to personal interpretation.  This is one of those recipes.  For more peppermint flavor, add 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract in place of the vanilla extract in the filling.  Not a lover of coffee? – simply eliminate the espresso powder.  Think cinnamon or other spices which will perk up this filling quite nicely.  Or, try some orange extract together with grated orange peel as a complimentary ingredient to the chocolate in this tart.

Source:  Adapted from Bittersweet by Alice Medrich