(Can you) Bakewell (?) Tart

It's autumn now, it's time for raspberries, pears and apples, it's the time when classrooms are cold because the heating doesn't get turned on until November. It's time for some autumnal baking!

Luckily the name of this tart isn't actually anything to do with your culinary abilities (it's just a place in England) but I often ask myself, can I actually bake well?

Sure, I can make some tasty food but what about all the baking fears. I find that I am part of the cliché which has made me think making pastry is an impossible task.

Why does it always stick to the counter? or split when I try to put it in the tin!?

Seeming as Bakewell tart has been a frequent request of my dad, I finally gave in and decided to face my pastry fears.Thank goodness this pastry recipe actually worked! (I even managed to roll it out thinly, yayy!)

Proof this tart is good:
There's only one slice of tart left, I only made it yesterday....

Correction, no slices. There's now no tart left.

That's a lot of tart for 3 people.
That's a lot of jam for 3 people... But jam is fruit, and fruit is good, ergo so is the tart. See, that's proof.

Bakewell Tart

makes an 8-inch tart (8 servings)

Pastry (this made more than I needed but I did roll it out quite thin)

40g / 1.4 oz / about 7 amaretti cookies

140g / 5oz / 1 (unsifted) c flour

a pinch of baking powder

a pinch of salt

1 tbsp sugar

70g / 2.5 oz / 5 tbsp butter, cold, cubed

2-3 tbsp vodka (or water), chilled

Filling

110g / 2 oz / about 10 amaretti cookies

28g /1oz / scant 1/4 c flour

56g /2oz / 1/4 c butter

28g /1oz / 1/4 c ground almonds

56g /2 oz / 1/3 heaped c sugar

1 egg

1 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

5-ish tbsp Jam - preferably raspberry, strawberry, cherry (but anything you want is fine)

sliced almonds and coarse brown sugar for sprinkling

For the pastry: Put the first 5 pastry ingredients in a food processor and blend until the cookies are completely broken into tiny pieces. 

Add the butter and blend until it's fully combined with the flour. 

Add the vodka/water 1 tbsp at a time, pulsing in between additions until the pastry just starts to come together. Gather the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. 

Don't clean the food processor yet, make the filling! :

Remove any pieces of pastry dough from the bowl of the food processor. Put the amaretti cookies (for the filling) in the food processor and blend until you get small crumbs. 

Add the flour and butter and blend until combined. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until fully mixed. You can refrigerate this while you wait for the pastry if you want, otherwise crack on with your pastry.

Preheat your oven to 340 degrees F. On a lightly floured surface roll out your pastry (you could also do this between 2 sheets of parchment paper), until it is large enough to fit into your tart tin, with about 2+ inches extra all the way around. Roll the pastry onto your rolling pin (making sure it's floured!) and unroll into your tart tin. Using a ball of excess pastry, press the dough into the tin, and cut off excess dough from the edges.

Spread your chosen jam onto the pastry.

Blob on the filling, spread it carefully (try to avoid letting the jam get mixed into it :/ ) so it covers the entire surface right up to the edges. Sprinkle with your sliced almonds and brown sugar. 

Bake on a cookie sheet, for 25-30 minutes.