Recipes - Bakewell Tart
Bakewell Tart was originally known as Bakewell Pudding and still is in parts of Derbyshire today. There are several stories about how it came into existence, but most must be apocryphal as it has long been known in its present form - a pastry case with a jam lining and a almond ‘cake' topping.
This almonds mixture is known as ‘frangipane' in the business, and I always wondered what the connection between it and the flower, frangipani, was. It seems a trifle tenuous, but the almond mix was supposedly named after an Italian aristocrat, Frangipani, who invented a perfume, probably using red jasmine, or frangipani, for the gloves of Louis XIII...
To make the pastry, sift the flour and salt into a bowl and add the sugar and citrus zest. Rub the butter and lard dice into the flour until the texture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolks. Mix to a dough, using the water if necessary, and form into a ball. If you have time, chill, wrapped in clingfilm, for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180ºC / 350ºF / Gas 4.
Roll the pastry out to a round to fit a 25cm (10 in) flan ring, and place in the ring. Cut off any excess pastry, and crimp the edges.
Warm the jam and then, if you can be bothered (but it's the correct way), press it through a fine sieve to get rid of the seeds. Spread over the base of the tart.
Meanwhile, beat the eggs and sugar together, and then slowly fold in the melted butter and the ground almonds. Pour carefully into the pastry-lined flan ring.
Bake in the preheated oven until set, about 35 minutes. Take out and cool.
Pour the icing into the centre of the tart and, using a palette knife, spread it as thinly as possible. Leave to set.
