Bakewell Tart!

This delicious and classic Bakewell tart has an easy homemade sweet shortcrust pastry, with a layer of raspberry jam, topped with a homemade almond frangipane and almonds.

Blind bake the pastry for a perfect crisp crust, add the jam and easy to mix frangipane and bake for a delicious classic dessert that is perfect served with custard.

Notes from The Patisserie

I adore anything Bakewell themed. Almonds, fruit, delicious. I have made this recipe over 30 times now because it is such an iconic classic, and I don’t get bored of it.

I prefer a homemade pastry (notes on how to make a super easy pastry below), and I often make my own homemade jam, but this recipe is suitable for all. Yes, it has a few steps to it to get a consistently good bake, but it’s worth the time and stages. Baking is a science, but it’s a fun science.

As my Bakewell blondies are one of the most popular recipes on my blog, I know you will all adore this easy Bakewell tart recipe as well.

What is a Bakewell Tart?

For those of you who don’t know… A Bakewell tart is a typically English pudding which consists of a shortcrust pastry case with layers of jam, frangipane, and a topping of flaked almonds – and it is just wonderful. It originated in the small town of Bakewell in Derbyshire, and has become a worldwide phenomenon, and one of my favourite flavours on the planet. 

The recipe can come in a few different forms, such as a larger dessert as this recipe is, mini ones that you can buy in the shops or make yourself at home, and then there are many different twists and updates to the idea of ‘bakewell’ as well. For me, the classic filling is a raspberry jam, whereas a ‘cherry bakewell’ is a slightly different version with a flood of icing on top, and a glacé cherry. 

Making the best Bakewell tart

How to make the BEST homemade pastry crust

I like to make my own shortcrust pastry, and it’s so much easier to make than you think, with only 5 simple ingredients.

I find the pastry so easy to make by hand so you don’t need to use any machines – and it also means the pastry dough isn’t overworked which is quite nice. However, you can use a food processor to make it easier if you have one or are short on time. 

I wrap the pastry in clingfilm and place it in the fridge for 30 minutes because the time you have spent working it will have warmed it up, so to prevent any soggy pastry, chilling is best.

Roll the chilled pastry out onto a lightly floured work surface until it’s about the thickness of 1-2 £1 coins which is about 3-5mm thick. Carefully lift the pastry and press into the bottom and sides of the prepared tin really well, make sure that there are no gaps as these will spread more when baking (as the pastry will shrink in the heat)

What is blind baking?

Typically you use a sheet of parchment paper, and either some baking beans, or uncooked rice to help bake the pastry – before you add any filling. The blind baking process starts to bake the pastry so that there are no soggy bottoms – after the 15 minutes, you remove the parchment and beans and bake for a further 5 minutes to dry the pastry out a little more.

I then carefully trim the top of the pastry whilst it is still hot (carefully), and then, you can do the quick and easy filling. You can trim the pastry before you blind bake, but as pastry shrinks, it can sometimes become too thin or narrow.

What flavour belongs in the middle?

The filling is so simple – one layer is simply just jam. There is debate over which is the ‘classic’ flavour, but I tend to use raspberry. For me this is the flavour I have grown up with having, but of course you can actually use whatever you prefer though. Cherry, strawberry – or a mixture works.

I often have a batch of my homemade jam lying around as I adore making it to whatever flavour I love – so that works really well. Shop bought jam is totally acceptable though – I often choose this for ease.

Making a frangipane filling

The rest of this recipe is the ‘frangipane’ – which is melted butter, sugar, ground almonds, almond extract and egg. Some people add flour, but I believe the classic is flourless so I do not.

Pouring this over the jam, carefully, typically trying to spread the filling a little over the top rather than just dumping it in the middle to prevent moving the jam about too much – and then top with some flaked almonds. I bake until there is an ever so slight wobble in the middle of the tart and then let it cool fully – this helps the almond mixture set and prevents a soggy filling.

Updated recipe notes

What changed, and why it matters:

I wanted to increase the quantities of the recipe as I felt like it didn’t fill the tart case enough, and felt a bit lacking. The baking time on the up-to-date recipe is 35-40 minutes, but towards the end of the baking process, you can lower the temperature of the oven and bake for longer if you find the tart is still too wobbly. You can cover with foil carefully towards the end to reduce any chance of burning. 

This recipe has been on my blog for many years, and due to some people struggling with the bake I decided to update and change up the recipe slightly to be better. However, if you wanted to make the original recipe on my blog, you can find that here: 

Original recipe (for reference):

• Pastry – unchanged
• Filling – 125g unsalted butter, 125g sugar, 125g ground almonds, 1 medium egg, 1 tsp almond extract
• To assemble – 200g jam, 50g flaked almonds
• Topping – 75g icing sugar + water, with a sprinkle of flaked almonds and freeze dried raspberries

FAQs

Storage and freezing

This recipe is best served on the day of baking, but will last for 2-3+ days in the fridge once made. I would store this on a plate lightly wrapped in cling film, or in a cake tin.

You can freeze the tart for 3+ months easily – either freeze whole, in the tin, or you can freeze slices. Thaw in the fridge overnight, or at room temperature in a few hours.

Love Bakewell themed bakes as much as me?

As I have said too many times now, this is one of my favourite combinations of flavours. If you feel inspired by this recipe, why not try these?

• Bakewell blondies – My blondies are a reader favourite, with a fudgy sweet texture, dotted with white chocolate chips and swirls of jam
• Berry Bakewell cake – This is a delicious cake version of the classic Bakewell tart – made into one tin, perfect served with a pouring of custard
• Bakewell cheesecake – something that is similarly themed, but no-bake. Perfect for summer, easy to put together in 10 minutes and then leave to set overnight for easy prep.