Almond Raspberry Tart
In these endless days of staying at home - when even if you are not in a government mandated lockdown, the usual freedom of socialising outside the home feels curtailed, a good dessert recipe can come in handy. This Almond and Raspberry tart recipe originates from The Bather’s Pavilion cookbook. I have adapted it over time and it is a toss up between this and the Lemon Rosemary Olive Oil cake for the most cooked sweet treat in our house. We have this tart a lot. It is extremely moist and delicious and if you are good at making pastry, it is also very easy to make. Unlike a cake, there is very little room for error. It is the perfect tart to take to a BBQ or for when you have friends over for dinner - and it is equally suitable for an afternoon cup of tea when a good friend pops over to say hi.
It will also leave you with egg whites - which you can whip up into meringues so that you get two desserts for the price of one - perfect for when you are entertaining and want to offer two dessert choices.
ALMOND AND RASPBERRY TART
pastry
(makes 2 pastry shells - halve the recipe for just one pastry shell)
12 oz plain flour
pinch of salt
7 oz cold butter, cubed
3-4 tablespoons ice cold water
filling
200g butter
160g sugar
6 egg yolks*
200g ground almonds
pinch of salt
dash of vanilla essence
2 tablespoon of raspberry jam
handful of fresh raspberries
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees c and start by making the pastry. Rub the cold butter into the flour using your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Work lightly and quickly (and preferably in a cold room) as you don’t want the butter to melt from the warmth of your fingers. Add a pinch of salt and gently mix in with your fingers. Slowly add in the ice water and using your hands start to gather the mixture together. Add enough water so that the pastry just comes together. It shouldn’t be crumbly (too dry) or feel slippery (too wet). You want it to feel pliable and smooth. If using the whole pastry recipe, divide the pastry into two balls and flatten each slightly to create two pastry disks. Wrap each disk in cling film and place in the refrigerator for 30 mins. You will only need one disk for this recipe. The other one will stay fine in the fridge for a day or two and you can use it for another recipe.
Remove one of the pastry disks from the refrigerator and roll it out on to a lightly floured surface until it is big enough to fit your fluted tart case (approx. 25cm). Line the tart case with the pastry and blind bake* in the oven for 10 mins. Meanwhile start to make your filling.
Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg yolks one at a time, incorporating each egg yolk as you go. Finally, add the ground almonds, salt and vanilla extract and mix until all the ingredients are combined.
Remove your pastry case from the oven and allow to cool. Spread the bottom of the pastry with the raspberry jam and fill with the almond filling. Dot the raspberries over the top (don’t worry about poking them in too far as they will sink a little as they cook). Place in the oven and cook for 30 mins (or until golden brown).
This tart is delicious warm, or you can serve it cold. It will last wrapped in the fridge for a week.
* Keep the egg whites and make individual meringues or a pavlova.
* To blind bake, place a piece of baking paper over the raw pastry shell and fill with baking beans to stop the pastry from rising. Once cooled from the oven, remove the paper and the baking beans.
I hope you enjoy making this recipe. Sorry the pastry recipe is in old fashioned imperial. It is the pastry recipe that my English mum taught me many (many) years ago when I was still just a teen living at home. It is my fail safe pastry recipe and used almost every week in our household. If you have your own pastry recipe which works for you - feel free to use that instead.
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