Bakewell Tart is a British classic, and one of my personal favourites, especially served with a huge scoop of clotted cream. I’ve decided to mix this recipe up a little bit, by using blackberry jam in stead of the traditional raspberry, and by adding in some fresh blackberries.
I think that this combination is absolutely delicious, and as it’s now reaching blackberry season here in the UK, it’s the perfect time to go picking!
Ingredients
For the pastry
280g plain flour
170g unsalted butter
70g golden caster sugar
30g ground almonds
1 medium egg
1 medium egg yolk
Pinch of salt
For the frangipane filling
250g ground almonds
110g golden caster sugar
120g fresh blackberries*
5 medium eggs
2 tbsp bramble jelly*
20g flaked almonds to sprinkle on top
*You can make a traditional Bakewell Tart by substituting the bramble jelly for raspberry jam, and missing out the fresh blackberries.
Method
- Start by making the pastry. In a large mixing bowl add the flour, salt, sugar, butter and ground almonds and rub together with your hands until you have a breadcrumb like consistency.
- In a small jug beat the egg and egg yolk, then pour this into the bowl, combine this all together to form a smooth dough.
- Wrap the dough tightly in cling film and leave to cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/350F/Gas 4, then grease and lightly flour a 23cm tart tin/dish. I like to use a metal tin with a loose-bottom and grooved edges.
- Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to cover the tart tin.
- Line the tin with the pastry and push it gently into the groves of the tin, be careful when handling the pastry as it is very short, and will break easily. Trim any pieces that are hanging over the edge. Prick the base a few times with a fork, then place a piece of baking paper over the top and fill with baking beans. If you don’t have baking beans you can use uncooked rice instead.
- Bake the pastry for 15 minutes, then remove the baking beans and bake for a further 2-5 minutes if necessary until the base is cooked through. Be careful when removing the baking beans, they will be very hot.
- Reduce the temperature to 165C/145C fan/330F/Gas 2.
- Whilst the pastry is cooling in the tin, put the ground almonds and caster sugar into a clean mixing bowl and stir together.
- In a jug beat the 5 eggs well and pour them on to the sugar and almonds, and combine well.
- Once the pastry is completely cool add the jam and spread it evenly across the base, place the blackberries on top of the jam in an even layer. I chopped the larger blackberries in half.
- Pour the almond mixture over the top and roughly level it out using a wooden spoon.
- Pour the almond mixture over the top and roughly level it out using a wooden spoon.
- Finally sprinkle with the flaked almonds and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the filling is golden brown on top and cooked through (it should be firm to the touch). If you feel that the top is browned enough, but the mixture is still slightly under cooked, place a piece of foil over the top of the tart and bake for a further 5 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and enjoy this tart hot or cold. I personally prefer it fresh out of the oven, but you can leave it to cool completely and it will keep for a few days if kept in an air tight container.
Let me know what you think of this tart, I love adding a slight twist to well known recipes, and I think that in this case it really works! I’d love to hear your thoughts.
🍰
