Come travel with me. Escape the world of Fascism and tariffs and instead wander the charming streets of Bakewell, a beautiful little town nestled amongst the rugged tors and lush valleys of Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire was, of course, a key location in Pride and Prejudice, one of the many works of esteemed author Jane Austen. The county was the beautiful setting for Darcy’s home at Pemberley, and the backdrop for one of the most iconic romances in English literature, along with (in the 1995 BBC version) a very memorable lake scene. Derbyshire was also the next county over from where I spent my childhood, and I have fond memories of exploring the Peak District and its towns and villages. There is much more to Derbyshire than grand old houses and beautiful countryside, and the town of Bakewell is a great place to explore one of the most popular culinary delights in the region. Step into a local restaurant and glance over the dessert menu and you are guaranteed to find a Bakewell Tart, a delicious, sweet treat containing frangipane, raspberry jam, and almonds.
The Bakewell Tart has its origins in a little baking accident which took place in the 19th Century when the landlady of the White Horse Inn in Bakewell, Derbyshire, requested that her cook bake a jam tart. Instead of incorporating the almond paste into the pastry, the cook spread the almond on top of the jam, thus creating an egg custard-like dessert which resembled a pudding. This accidental creation proved to be both delicious and popular and became known as the Bakewell Pudding. The recipe first appeared in print in the year 1845, in Modern Cookery for Private Families by Eliza Acton. In 1900 a new variant was developed where the egg custard filling was replaced by frangipane, a sponge made using almond flour or ground almonds, topped with chopped almonds. This variation is the Bakewell Tart we know and love. Further tinkering has led to the development of the Cherry Bakewell, where the ground almonds are replaced by glacé frosting, and it is a candied half cherry. Of these variations, the traditional Bakewell Tart is my favourite; I find the Cherry Bakewell can be overly sweet and I need to be in the right mood to eat one. These days, it is usually the Cherry Bakewells you will find on supermarket shelves — if you want the traditional version you’ll have to find one in a local bakery, or bake your own. Thankfully, baking one yourself is not too difficult.
The version I’m making today is an egg-free version, because I love you all and I don’t want you to have to sell a kidney in order to afford eggs. The recipe can be made vegan by simply switching the dairy ingredients for their plant-based equivalent.
You can enjoy this tart warm or cold, but it is exceptionally beautiful when served warm and accompanied by cream, clotted cream, custard (crème anglaise, if you’re feeling French), or vanilla ice cream.
For my fellow Diabetics, or anyone else who needs to count their carbohydrates:
This recipe contains a total of 407g of carbs. It will comfortably serve 8, so that’s 50.9g of carbs per portion, not including any cream, custard or ice cream you may decide to serve with it.
Digital kitchen scales
Measuring spoons
Large, heavy bowl for pastry making (or a food processor)
Rolling pin
Stand mixer or large bowl
Hand whisk or wooden spoon
Fluted pie or tart dish, 10” is perfect
Baking sheet large enough to fit your tart dish
Baking parchment
Pie Weights/Baking Beads or dried rice/lentils
For the pastry (or you could buy ready-made shortcrust pastry from the grocery store, there is no shame in taking shortcuts):
150 g (or 1 1/4 cup) all-purpose/plain flour
45 g (1/3 cup) ground almonds/almond flour
45 g (1/3 cup) powdered/confectioners/icing sugar
100 g (7 Tbs) butter
20 ml (4 tsp) cold water
For the frangipane:
80 g (6 Tbs) butter
65 g (1/2 cup) sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
80 g (1/4 cup) sweetened condensed milk
135 g (1 1/8 cup) ground almonds/almond flour
65 g (1/2 cup) all-purpose/plain flour
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
40 ml (8 tsp) 2% milk/semi-skimmed milk
¼ tsp almond extract (optional)
You will also need:
5 Tbsp seedless raspberry jam
75 g (3/4 cup) flaked almonds
Mix together your dry ingredients for the pastry. Cube your butter and add to the dry mix. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Add in the cold water and mix until the dough starts to come together. Alternatively, put all the ingredients into your food processor and pulse until the dough starts to stick together. You may need to add a little more water if there are patches of dry flour, but we’re talking about very small amounts, no more than a ½ tsp.
Give the dough a quick knead to bring it together and then roll it our on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to comfortably cover your pie/tart dish.
Drape your pastry over the dish and gently push it into the edges. Trim off any excess but be sure to leave a small overhang to prevent shrinkage during cooking.
Leave your pastry base to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Pre-heat your oven to 350F (180C) with your baking sheet inside.
Cut a large square of baking parchment and crumple it up. Uncrumple it and use it to line your pastry case. Fill the lined pastry case with pie weights/baking beads or dry rice/lentils.
Place the pie/tart tin containing your pastry case onto the hot baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove the baking parchment and pie weights/baking beads/rice/lentils. Return the pastry to the oven for another 10 minutes.
The pastry should now be starting to turn a pale golden colour. Take it out and leave to cool.
To make your frangipane, mix together your butter, sugar, and vanilla essence until it is pale and fluffy. A stand mixer with the whisk attachment, set to a medium speed, should accomplish this in about 2 or 3 minutes, or you could do it using a hand-whisk. Add the sweetened condensed milk and whisk until smooth.
In a separate bowl, combine the ground almonds/almond flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Now add these to the wet mixture and whisk until the mixture is smooth and free from clumps of flour. Add the almond extract if using and mix well.
Place your raspberry jam into the bottom of your pastry case and use the back of a spoon to spread it out so it covers the entire base. Give your spoon a quick clean and then spoon the frangipane over the top of the jam and use the spoon to smooth the top.
Sprinkle the flaked almonds across the top of the frangipane and then place the tart back into the oven at 350F (180C) for 25-30 minutes, or until the frangipane is a golden colour.
Leave to cool for about 10 minutes and then trim off any excess pastry so the tart is neat and tidy. I find a serrated knife such as a bread knife works perfectly for this.
Remove the Bakewell Tart from the tin and serve. Don’t forget to bask in the praise from whomever you decide to share this with — seriously, you deserve it. If you’re choosing not to share it, give yourself a pat on the back and then enjoy the results of your efforts.
It’s Mr Cake’s 40th birthday today and he’s celebrating with a lemon and lime cake with cream cheese frosting, so I will have that recipe for you for next month.
For now, bake cakes and spread joy.
And don’t forget to donate to Wonkette if you’re able to, it helps to keep the ovens burning.
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