Bakewell tarts with a homemade cherry jam – a very simple pastry which is perfect with an afternoon tea. I simply love the crisp shortcrust pastry, sweet home-made cherry jam, soft almond frangipane topped with white icing and a glacé cherry.
Why is it Called a Cherry Bakewell?
The cherry bakewell is thought to be linked to a small town in England called Bakewell, however, there is no evidence to suggest this. Nevertheless, artisan bakery’s such as The Bakewell Bakery, Bakewell still produce both the tarts and puddings using traditional methods. The cherry bakewell has a few interchangeable names such as the bakewell tart and the bakewell pudding. The cherry bakewell is an adaptation of the original pudding which didn’t originally include white icing and a glacé cherry
The secret to my cherry bakewell is the use of homemade cherry jam. Now that cherries are in season it is a perfect time to make a delicious cherry jam.
Cherry bakewell’s are one of my dad’s favourite treats. So with cherry’s being in season I though it was the perfect time to create this recipe. In the UK, on an industrial level there is one leader in cherry bakewells; Mr Kipling. However, these are no match for my homemade version.
This recipe is centred round the sweet cherry jam. It is in the name! To get the classic of cherry bakewell, you need that great cherry jam flavour. The jam is really simple and only contains three ingredients; cherries, sugar and lemon juice, but it packs a deep cherry flavour.
Another important part of the cherry bakewell is the almond frangipane. This covers the cherry jam and offers a soft texture to contrast the crisp pastry.
The tarts are then transferred to the oven and baked for 20-25 minutes before being topped with white icing and a glacé cherry.
Cherry Bakewells
Equipment
- 12 hole muffin tin
Ingredients
- 500 g Shortcrust pastry
Cherry Jam
- 230 g Fresh Cherries (Destoned)
- 100 g Caster Sugar
- 1 Lemon (Juice)
Frangipane
- 125 g Butter
- 125 g Golden caster sugar
- 1 Large egg
- 2 tsp Plain flour
- 125 g Ground Almonds
Toppings
- 250 g Icing Sugar
- 2.5 tbsp Water
- 12 Glacé cherries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C fan/180°C.
Preparing the Cherry Jam
- Place the destoned cherries, the juice of the lemon and caster sugar in a pan on a medium heat.
- Bring the jam to the boil,, then turn down to a simmer and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes on a low heat.
- Then place the jam in a food processer and blend until smooth. Pour into a jar and allow to cool.
Preparing the frangipane
- In a bowl, cream together the butter and golden caster sugar.
- Add the egg and continue to whisk until all is combined.
- Add the flour to prevent the mixture from splitting
- Pour in the ground almonds and mix together until completely combined.
Assembling the Tart
- Roll out the pastry to a thickness of 1/2 cm.
- Cut the pastry with a 9cm ring cut. Place the pastry inside the muffin moulds. On top of the pastry place in a piece of greaseproof paper and baking bean. Bake for 10 minutes before removing the beans and baking for an additional 10 minutes.
- Once removed from the oven, place a couple of teaspoons of jam in the bottom, followed by the frangipane and place back in the oven for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix the icing sugar with the water until it forms a smooth thich white icing.
- Once cooked, remove from the oven and place on a wired rack to cool.
- Spoon the white icing on to the top of the tarts and place a glacé cherry in the centre of the tart to get that classic bakewell look.
The recipe for cherry jam is based off of Fab Food 4 All cherry jam. The frangipane recipe is based off of BBC Food Cherry bakewell recipe.