I first wrote about these back in 2010. I haven’t made them for years. I used to bake Bakewell tart a lot and I thought I didn’t like it anymore. But it’s late September, our government is currently shit, I can’t escape to Italy as Mussolini is basically back in power and the news is too much.
So in order to escape I got up early to make these for a craft morning tomorrow (which is mine and my youngest’s way of escaping the world).
The pastry:
200g plain flour
2 tablespoons icing sugar
100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
2 egg yolks if you want to be true to the recipe but I now just use one egg
I whizz the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor, then add the egg until it all comes together. You can do it with your hands too of course.
I never roll out pastry. Life is too damn short. It’s not too short to make your own pastry though cos shop bought really isn’t the same and how long does it take to weigh out a few ingredients and slam them in a gadget?
When it’s blended, I just take bits of the pastry and flatten it out into the bottom of whatever tin I’m using, welding it all together with a thumb like a giant pastry jigsaw. I use a square tin that’s about 21cm. Line the bottom well with baking parchment, first though, if possible with some ‘overlap’ to help you lift it out when it’s done.
Then when you’ve covered the bottom of the tin with pastry in this piece meal (no gaps though) but completely acceptable fashion, chill the pastry for about half an hour (perfectly do-able to chill for longer of course).
In the meantime, preheat the oven to 190C. When the pastry has rested, cover with foil, pour on baking beans. Bake blind (this means with nowt in it but the baking beans on the foil) for 15 mins. Then remove the beans (take care they’ll be hot) and bake for a further five minutes.
The filling
I use Bonne Maman Black cherry jam, about a third of a jar.
frangipani filling pt 2:
125g caster sugar
100g very soft unsalted butter
3 eggs
half a teaspoon of almond extract
150g wonderful ground almonds (I LOVE ground almonds)
Mix the butter and sugar together until it’s light and fluffy, this is quite a good work out for your arms and you’ll expend about 12 calories to offset against the calorific value of these slices, then add the eggs, one at a time, mix well, then the almond extract and finally fold in the ground almonds.
When the pastry base is out of the oven and cooled just a little, spoon the black cherry jam onto the pastry case, then on top spread the frangipani topping.
I also like to top it all with flaked almonds, like a handful scattered on top. You can never have enough almonds, rich in protein (so they bring down the GI of anything), calcium and essential fatty acids. How can you go wrong. Unless you’re allergic to nuts of course.
Cook for 20-25 mins or so, the top should be definitely golden, not pale blonde. When out, tie your hands behind your back and dive in face first. Or alternatively, slice into Mr Kipling type slices. I top mine with a mixture made of 50g icing sugar and 50g cream cheese, drizzle on top.
These keep lovely in an tin for a few days.
Pane Amore e Cha Cha Cha 
I’m glad I came across your blog: I’ve been looking through several of your articles, and keep finding overlaps with the content of my own (which features lots of bread-based recipes, in particular).
This one made me laugh – at me, not you – for I am preparing a new short article series on puddings (beginning with Bakewell Pudding in July). I had been intending to ‘compare and contrast’ the traditional pudding and its cousin, the tart, and possibly take in the ‘Cherry Bakewell’ along the way. I’m a pedant, at heart, with an interest in the origin and composition of established recipes, so I’ve been reading around the topic of Bakewell’s culinary products, and tutting about ludicrous claims to have invented the recipe long after versions had already appeared in print, the rival claims of the various establishments that still make them, and whether any jam, except strawberry, should be countenanced, etc., etc.
I’m going to try your recipe, but I can’t imagine it could take as long just to roll out the pastry, conventionally, as to weld bits of it together with a thumb. I tiny bit more liquid needed, perhaps, and then you could just spread it out with your fingers if you really don’t want to roll? I’d rather give up the food processor (it’s so easy to overwork pastry, making it tough) anyway, than my rolling pin – but then I make more laminated pastry (and yeasted dough for croissants or Danish) than shortcrust, and you certainly can’t do those with a thumb.
I guess these slices will work with any fruit in the jam: black cherry sounds interesting, but you’ve given me an idea for an apricot version. The pits from apricots (once blanched, dried and ground) make an interesting alternative to ground almonds (eg in amaretti), and a proportion could go into the frangipane to bring out the flavour of the filling in the topping.