The Best Gluten-Free Valentine's Day Dessert Ideas

Above my kitchen table painted on the wall is a saying "La cuisine est un révélateur de l'amour.", which loosely translates to "In the kitchen, love is developed." Not only is the kitchen the heart of the home and where most people tend to congregate, but when you cook food to share with your family and friends you are ultimately sharing your love with them. With the care and thoughtfulness you put into each meal, love will emanate from the dishes you create.

Whenever someone is ill, or has a baby, the first thing I think of is to make food for them. For nearly all occasions, there is food involved. It's the best way I know how to demonstrate my love and concern for them.

In my kitchen, I have been lucky to pass this love of cooking on to my children and they understand as well as I do that food brings people together and crosses every divide. They have become excellent helpers and I hope that they will continue to be excited by learning to cook, but even more importantly, I hope that they will enjoy sitting down, sharing meals and conversations with their own families and friends later in life.

Even though love is developed in my kitchen every day, Valentine's Day is especially significant as the kids decorate heart shaped cookies, make chocolate candies, and write out little notes of admiration to their classmates. They have also been known to make a few desserts with me, mostly lingering around for a bowl or a spatula that is dripping in chocolate.

Valentine's Day dessert is my Gluten Free Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Tart. It's such a simple recipe but it produces an extremely rich, decadent dessert that looks so beautiful, your Valentine will think you've spent days making it.

I recently shared this dessert at an event held by The Daily Meal and sponsored by Driscoll's. Dorie Greenspan was their special guest and judged a contest for the attendees who were tasked to create dishes made with Driscoll's raspberries that exemplified their #MadeWithLove campaign. I knew this tart fit the bill and I am thrilled to say that it won and I am incredibly happy to share it here with you. It is sure to win over your intended on Valentine's Day too.

Although this recipe calls for raspberries, you could also use Driscoll's strawberries to top this luxurious dessert. You could even reserve some of the chocolate bar to melt and dip a few strawberries into for an even more indulgent decoration. Feel free to jazz it up and add different flavorings to the ganache, such as cardamom or chili powder, nutmeg and cloves for a different taste. It's a recipe that is versatile and always exciting.

I've made this as individual tartlets for dinner parties or as a large tart (using a 12" tart pan) to feed a crowd. Since this is for an intimate Valentine's Day dinner, I am using a 9" tart pan and the recipe has been scaled for this family sized dessert.

Renee Iseson writes a blog, Kitchen Conundrum, that celebrates her favorite recipes, cookbooks, and products she loves.

Follow Kitchen Conundrum on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest