Cherry Bakewell Tart

3.50 from 2 votes

Cherry Bakewell tart is a retro classic in the world of British baking. Shortcrust pastry, sweet cherry jam and a delightful frangipane topping smothered in glacé icing with a crown of candied cherries make this cherry and almond tart hard to resist.

Prep Time30

Cook Time40

Total Time1 10

Course: Afternoon tea, Dessert

Cuisine: British

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 413kcal

Author: Jane Coupland

Equipment

1 x 8-inch (20cm) tart tin with a depth of 1-inch (2.5cm

Ingredients

For the shortcrust pastry

150 g Plain flour (all-purpose)
30 g Icing sugar
90 g Butter cold
¼ teaspoon Salt
3 tablespoons Ice-cold water

For the filling

115 g Butter room temperature
115 g Caster sugar
2 Eggs large, free-range at room temperature
¼ teaspoon Almond extract optional
115 g Ground almonds (almond meal)
125 g Cherry jam
1 tablespoon Flaked almonds

For the topping

75 g Icing sugar
⅕ teaspoon Almond extract
Cold water
6 Glacé cherries

Instructions

Make the shortcrust pastry

Put the plain flour, 30g icing sugar & salt into a bowl. Cube the butter, add it to the bowl and use your fingertips to rub it in until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
Add 3 tablespoons of ice-cold water and stir with a blunt knife until it begins to clump together. Now use your hands to form a ball with the dough. Tip it onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it briefly until smooth. Wrap the dough in food wrap and chill it for 30 minutes.
On a floured work surface roll the dough out to 2-3mm thickness and line the tart tin with it. Prick the base with a fork. Cover and chill for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180c/ 350F and put a baking sheet into it to heat up.
Cover the pastry with baking parchment, fill it with baking beans or dried lentils & beans and place it on the baking sheet in the oven to bake for 15 minutes. Remove the beans & parchment and bake for 5 minutes more. Set it aside.

Make the filling

Cream the butter and sugar together using electric beaters until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs, beating well between each addition. If using, mix in the almond extract.
Fold the ground almonds into the mixture using a large metal spoon.
Spread the jam over the pastry jam and add the almond batter, spreading it out to completely cover the jam.
Slide the tart onto the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake it for 20 minutes. Scatter the flaked almonds over the top and bake for another 20 minutes until golden and set.
Set aside to cool completely.

Decorate the tart

Mix the icing sugar and almond extract with 1½ teaspoons of cold water using a blunt knife. Keep adding more water in ¼ teaspoon increments until the icing is loose enough to fall from the knife slowly but without help.
Drizzle the icing over the tart, cut the cherries in half and press them into the icing. Let the icing set for 30 minutes before slicing into the tart.

Notes

To avoid a soggy bottomed tart blind bake your tart case. Using a dark tin and placing the tin on a baking sheet in the oven also helps to ensure the base is properly cooked.
Use digital scales and gram measurements for accuracy when baking. I cannot stress enough how imprecise the cup measuring system is. For that reason, I don’t recommend it.
Use the correct-sized tin otherwise, there will either be too much or too little of the ingredients to fill is properly.
If you are short on time use readymade shortcrust pastry. You’ll need around 300g to line an 8-inch tart tin.
Scatter the almonds on the top of the tart midway through the baking time to avoid them browning too quickly.
Wait until your cherry and almond tart has cooled fully before adding the glacé icing, otherwise it will soak in.
To freeze your Bakewell tart wrap the cooled tart in foodwrap then store it in a freezer-proof bag. Don’t forget to label and date it. Store for up to 2 months and defrost fully at room temperature before serving it.

Variations

Individual – take a leaf out of Mr Kipling’s recipe book and turn out some individual cherry Bakewell tarts. I suggest making them in a muffin tin to create lovely, deep tarts. Expect to make around 120 from the ingredients listed in the recipe card.
Jam – vary the jam to suit your taste preferences or what you have open in the cupboard. Anything goes. But might I suggest my Amaretto cherry jam if you would like to add an indulgent adult feel to your dessert.
Pistachio – ring the changes by swapping the ground almonds for ground pistachio nuts. The combination of cherry jam and pistachio frangipane is divine.
Icing – double it for a fuller and thicker topping to your cherry Bakewell tart.
Almonds – increase the amount of flaked almonds scattered over the top and don’t add icing for a more traditional Bakewell tart recipe.

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