bakewell tart

Bakewell Tart

10/12/2018

I don't remember what I had been looking for, exactly, but I'm pretty sure, maybe, that it had to do with pithiviers. Yes, I think I had been scrolling through Google images, or perhaps Pinterest, all the while ogling pictures of pithiviers. Or maybe it was just their frangipane filling? Either way, I’d been engaging in this meditation in an attempt to go to my happy place, or, more specifically, as a way to make my mind unavailable to increasing levels of anxiety, because for some reason, when I think to myself “happy thoughts, happy thoughts,” that is not what I typically get. So instead, I focused intently: la, la, la, frangipane, la, la, la, pithiviers, la, la, la, the sky isn’t falling... when, serendipitously, something I hadn’t been looking for caught my eye: the Bakewell Tart, which had sadly been missing from my life until now.

The tart itself is comprised of a blind-baked pastry crust, filled with a thin layer of jam, followed by a thick layer of frangipane, and topped with sliced almonds before baking. Seems straightforward enough, right? Well, wasn’t I surprised to find out that the history of the tart is actually a bit murky, its place of origin hotly debated, and even descends to a macabre level in the case of the Bakewell Tart murder. I’m pretty sure I had been seeking happy thoughts, though, when I originally came across the tart and so I’m going to return to that original initiative while still providing some background. I'll leave the rest for Poirot (Suchet, NOT Branagh. Sorry not sorry.) Here goes.

In the town of Bakewell, England, there are multiple shops claiming to be *the* spot where the eponymous tart was created, by mistake, no less. That's right, it came into the world as a screw-up. It’s worth noting that prior to taking on its contemporary tart-form, it did exist in a previous incarnation as Bakewell Pudding. Despite there being some fundamental distinctions between the two (puff pastry vs short-crust pastry, all purpose flour in the filling or strictly almond flour) it turns out that the pudding and the tart are still much beloved and oft-confused kin to this day. You can ice them, or not, I glean that this might be another potentially sensitive issue. You can make little ones to share with your family, or not, but if they find out, that might be another potentially sensitive issue.

By the time I finally got around to Bakewell Tart making, I had plans to get together with family the following day, I was hit with the inspiration to make individual tarts for them. Plus, I love an excuse to use my grandma’s old cookie tins. Everyone lights up when they see them, the fond memories of baked goods stored within are strong. I went a bit cuckoo and personalized a tart for each person with the initial of their first name in almonds...I also had a backup plan with the almonds simply scattered across the top of the remaining tarts...just in case my first attempts turned into Pinterest fails.

It gives me great joy to share the things I’ve made with my family, and it has since I was a kid. Speaking of which, I’m recalling the time I accidentally botched the measurements for baking powder in a batch of blondies. Boy, was that a surprise. I remember the final hurdle of hurriedly getting through dinnertime, after having gone through the steps of assembling the ingredients, mixing, baking, and cooling. They looked so good as they sat there in the pan, the surface dotted with M&M’s in the time before the blue one came about. Rip, tan M&M.

I recall the anticipation of cutting into them and serving a piece to each family member. Everyone was excited. They smelled so good! Unfortunately, upon tasting, disappointment settled in. The silence spoke volumes while everyone exchanged nervous glances across the table. The spell finally broke when I was asked “How much baking powder did you put in?” Mom and Dad were able to troubleshoot fairly quickly, as baking powder was, somehow, the sole prevailing taste. I’m pretty sure they were horrified by that creation. I was horrified by it. I remember feeling crushed, but also resolved to myself that I would attempt these again, and NEXT TIME, I would get it right. You see, unlike the Divine Providence of the Bakewell Tart, those blondies were not a glorious mistake. I’m so glad we’ve put that all behind us.

Bakewell Tart
The recipe for pastry crust yields enough for two large tarts. Anytime I make this dough I always make enough so that I can squirrel one disc away in the freezer. Since the dough is unsweetened, it works wonderfully in other applications, such as quiche and pot pie. I always sleep a little easier knowing I have some on standby. This recipe has been adapted from Stephanie Johnston's Bakewell Tart and the berry jam has been adapted from a Martha Rose Shulman recipe, both via NYT Cooking. The pastry crust has been adapted from Tartine.
Yield: 1 large or 8 individual tarts
Ingredients:
Pastry Crust

1 pound all purpose flour
10 1/2 ounces unsalted butter, cut into one inch cubes, keep cold
2/3 cup water, ice cold
1 teaspoon salt

Berry Jam

8 ounces strawberries, hulled and quartered
8 ounces raspberries
1/2 lemon, juiced
4 tablespoons honey
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
cornstarch slurry (2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 2 teaspoons cool water)

Frangipane

1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
a pinch of salt
4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup sliced almonds (to top frangipane before baking)

Icing

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon cool water

Method:

Make and bake the pastry crust.

Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Break up the very cold cubed butter over top of the flour and place the lid back atop the food processor. Pulse to combine the mixture until large pea-sized pieces form.
Remove the lid and pour the ice cold water over top of the flour-butter mixture. Replace the lid and pulse until a mass of dough forms into a ball.
Turn the dough out from the food processor onto a floured work surface. Lightly sprinkle flour over the ball of dough. Using a bench scraper, portion the dough in two. Pat/press portioned dough into two discs with a thickness of about one inch. Double wrap each disc with plastic wrap.
Chill the dough until it's firm, a minimum of thirty minutes, or overnight if you're planning ahead. If you're going to freeze one portion of the dough, slide the wrapped disc into a freezer bag and label and date it with a Sharpie (because we all sometimes forget what we've put in our freezers and for how long they've been there.)
Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper and lightly spray your tart pan with oil. Dust your work surface with flour. Take the dough out of the refrigerator, remove the plastic wrap, and place on the floured work surface. Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour and use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a circle with a thickness of roughly 1/8 inch. Transfer the dough to your prepared tart pan and work the dough into all the edges. Prick the dough all over with a fork, and slide the pan into your refrigerator or freezer to keep it cold. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Line the pastry dough with parchment paper and fill with dried beans or pie weights before blind baking the crust until it is light golden brown, rotating the pan halfway through baking, this will take about forty minutes. Once fully baked, remove the weights/beans and set aside to cool.

Make the berry jam.

Combine the berries, lemon juice, honey, cinnamon, and one tablespoon of water in a nonreactive saucepan. Simmer over medium heat for about ten minutes, occasionally stirring, until the berries begin to break down and exude all their liquid.
Give your slurry a quick stir to reincorporate the starch into the liquid, and add the mixture to the berries. Stir to combine, and continue simmering until the mixture has thickened, about another five minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Make the frangipane.

Combine the flours, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together starting at the lowest speed for about thirty seconds and then increase to medium for another minute or two.
Add one egg, and mix on medium speed for about one minute before adding the next egg and the almond extract.
Stop the mixer, scrape the batter from the paddle, sides, and bottom of the mixing bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients, and mix on low until just blended. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix on low for thirty seconds to a minute, until the dry ingredients are just incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to transfer the frangipane to a pastry or ziploc bag.

Assemble the tart.

Set the oven to 350°F. Spread the jam in an even layer across the bottom of the baked pastry crust.
Use a paring knife or kitchen shears to trim a hole about an inch wide from the pastry or ziploc bag.
Pipe the frangipane on top of the berry jam. This can get frustrating as the frangipane is thick, and will not evenly disperse. Take a deep breath and focus on relatively even distribution across the top of the tart. Use an offset spatula to smooth out the surface without agonizing too deeply over it. Magical things transpire during baking.
Scatter the sliced almonds across the top of the tart, or, painstakingly and deliberately place each single sliced almond where you'd like it to be. I've done both, and I'm fine!
Bake the tart until the frangipane is golden brown and the center has risen and feels firm to the touch, about forty-five minutes.
Allow the tart to cool for a few minutes before removing it from the pan to a wire rack.
Combine the powdered sugar and water for the icing, if using. Once the tart has cooled, drizzle the icing over top of the tart.

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Bakewell Tart

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