Really easy (but seriously impressive) bakewell slices

This bakewell tart looks really impressive with its clear layers, but by using bought short crust pastry it is actually really simple to make

You will need

• Rectangular tin
• Ready rolled sweet shortcrust pastry
• 4 tbsp of cherry jam (or raspberry if you can't find cherry jam)
• 200g butter or marg (plus a little for greasing)
• 200g caster sugar
• 100g self raising flour
• 1 tsp baking power
• 50g ground almond
• 1/2 tsp of almond extract
• 10 glace cherries
• 200g icing sugar

Getting started

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
• Grease your tin and cut the pastry to fit the base, press it gently into the corners and then prick it all over with a fork to prevent it rising too much

 



The use the paper the pastry came off to cover it, and then add baking beans (or pasta)

Bake in the oven for 10 minutes until just cooked, and then remove the paper and beans/pasta and then return to the oven for another 2 minutes

Spread the jam over the pastry and set aside while you begin to make the filling

 

• In a large bowl, combine the butter, sugar, ground almond, flour and baking powder and mix.
• Break the eggs into another bowl, add the almond extract and beat

Slowly incorporate the eggs into the large bowl and mix well until you have a loose cake mix

• Pour this slowly/gently over the pastry (to prevent disturbing the jam layer) and then place in the oven
• After 35 minutes check how things are going and if the middle still wobbles but the edges are cooked, loosely cover with tin foil before returning to the oven for a further 10 minutes

• While the bake is cooling, slice your cherries in two and mix the icing sugar with a little water. Do this slowly, so that the icing has some movement and will slowly run off the back of the spoon but is not too wet.
• Spoon the icing onto the cake and spread to the corners
• Decorate by laying the cherries out in a grid pattern

• The cake can then be cut between the cherries to make slices (2 cherry halves per piece) or smaller squares (with a cherry in the centre)

Finally serve and allow people to admire the perfectly formed layers!