Almond Slice

It’s half term here in the UK and we are visiting my parents on the Isle of Wight again. Despite wind speeds of 99mph recorded at the Needles Battery on the night of the huge storm we had in the UK this week, we have seen very little damage. And the ferry crossing on Monday was one of the smoothest we’ve had as we were on the car ferry for a change!

My Mum mentioned that my Dad had requested some Almond Slices so we brought these with us. They are my version of Bakewell Tart and have a slightly healthier edge with very thin, wholemeal spelt pastry. A proper tart would obviously have pastry sides too.

These work equally well as a hot dessert as they do as a piece of cake, although if you want them to look neat and tidy when you cut them you have to wait until they are properly cooled.

I made a full recipe quantity of wholemeal spelt pastry but only used half: the other half I put into the freezer for the next time. One of the great things with this recipe is that you don’t need to bake the pastry blind beforehand.

A few drops of almond essence will give a stronger flavour but don’t worry if you don’t have any: they will still be good. The flaked almonds on the top toast to a golden brown and give a delicious nutty taste and texture. I cut mine into about 14 slices but not that many made it into the tin…

Bakewell slices

Recipe

Ingredients

Half a recipe quantity of wholemeal spelt pastry

2 to 3 tablespoons raspberry jam

175g butter

175g golden caster sugar

3 eggs

A few drops of almond essence (optional)

100g ground almonds

75g SR flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

40g flaked almonds

Method

Make your pastry and allow to rest in the fridge for a little while.

Set the oven to 180°C.

Roll out your pastry to approximately the size and shape of your tin. I used an 11×7″ traybake tin.

Roll out your pastry and put in the tin

This pastry is very forgiving so you can use the extra bits in some places to fill in the gaps in others:

Use the trimmings to fully line the tin

Spread your jam evenly over the pastry

A good use for homemade jam!

Make the filling:

Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and creamy.

Add the eggs one at a time and mix in the almond essence, if using.

Fold in the flour, ground almonds and baking powder and mix until properly combined.

Turn into the tin and level gently.

Scatter the flaked almonds over the surface of the cake mixture and bake for around 35 minutes or until well browned and firm to the touch.

Well Baked Bakewell

The cooler these are when you cut them, the neater your slices will be.

Delicious hot or cold

Categories: Baking, Cakes, Desserts, Pastry, Recipes

Tags: baking, cake, dessert, flaked almonds, ground almonds, jam, pastry, recipe, spelt flour