Chocolate Spice Pumpkin Tart - Eggless!

We had a Halloween potluck at work the other day. My office kitchen has only a microwave and a refrigerator -- so the dilemma was what would be original and fresh enough, being only microwaved or refigerated?

I had been going crazy lately with my new tart pans, and next thing I knew I was making this Chocolate Spiral Pumpkin Tart. I started with a basic tart crust recipe and invented the rest! To my amazement, the second time I glanced at the potluck table, every slice was gone.

This may be just right for Thanksgiving, too. I am definitely considering it :)

For my chocolate crust, I used:
1 stick unsalted butter, cold & cubed
1 tspn salt
1/2 tspn Saigon cinnamon
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup ice cold water

For my pumpkin filling, I used:
12 oz can plain pumpkin puree
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tspn ginger powder
1/2 tspn Saigon cinnamon
1/2 tspn clove powder
1/2 tspn freshly ground nutmeg
6 oz. unsweetened evaporated milk (or you can use heavy cream)
1 ounce of finely chopped dark chocolate -- mine was from Madagascar, 65% cacao by Theo


My method:
1) Put salt, flour, cinnamon, cocoa, & sugar in a food processor & pulse

2) Add butter & pulse few times to get a coarse mix

3) Add water & pulse till the dough comes together -- don't over mix

4) Make a ball, flatten, wrap in plasticwrap (make sure it's airtight) & refrigerate for about half an hour

5) Preheat your oven to 375 F (190 C)

6) Roll out your tart & press into a 9" or 10" tart pan, whichever you have, preferably with a removable bottom

7) In a big bowl, mix all your filling ingredients except the chocolate, till nicely combined

8) Make holes with a fork in your tart crust

9) Bake the crust for about 15 min -- this ensures the bottom is cooked nicely

10) Take it out & sprinkle 3/4 of your chopped dark chocolate on the crust, and quickly spread with a spatula as it melts

11) Pour the filing up to the edge, while not overflowing, and spread evenly with a spatula. It won't puff up as much as a pie because there is no egg, so you can fill it up well.

12) Now take the 1/4 of the remaining chocolate & slowly sprinkle it, making a spiral from the center out. An even hand comes with practice. To practice first, take any ground spice & practice in an empty dish :)

13) Bake the tart for about 40-50 minutes. The time will vary for your oven, so keep an eye on it. When it's finished you'll notice the edges crisp up, but you also want to let the filing get nicely cracked to show it's cooked.

14) Let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for a couple of hours or up to a day before serving.

So, what's your defense against dark tart? Go ahead, make it ;)