Strawberry Rose Bakewell Tart

As a child growing up in Yorkshire, one of my favourite treats was an individual Mr. Kipling’s bakewell tart, with a glossy candied cherry in the centre. While I’d probably not say no to one if I found them in the United States (where I live now), I didn’t realise until adulthood how truly fantastic a good, homemade bakewell tart could be, versus the factory-made pastries of my childhood. I brought this tart to an American 4th of July gathering, and was shocked that a few American guests knew precisely what it was! They acknowledged they’d seen them on the popular television series ‘The Great British Bake Off’.

My bakewell is a bit different in that I use my homemade strawberry rose jam (a recipe I will need to publish at some point soon). If you don’t have strawberry rose jam on hand you can use strawberry (or raspberry) jam with a touch of rose water for a similar effect. I also use an almond shortcrust pastry – part flour, part almond flour; and instead of almond extract in the frangipane (the soft center of the tart) I use mahlab, a Middle Eastern baking spice to give it a natural almond taste (I also use this in my clafoutis, for the same effect). If you don’t have mahlab you can simply omit it, and add just a few drops of almond extract if desired.

The tart is honestly just as good without the icing – and actually, as I’m not big on very sweet things, I found I actually preferred it without. It would be equally lovely (and a touch less rich) simply topped with sifted confectioner’s (icing) sugar and dried rose petals. Here’s what it looked like right out of the oven:

I do acknowledge that the iced version is certainly a bit prettier / fussier looking, it almost looks like something from a Victorian era afternoon tea – which I love, but it is indeed very sweet. You may have leftover icing as well – which you can use to ice shortbread cookies or other desserts. I’d err on the side of using less of the royal icing so that it doesn’t end up too sweet.

Gluten-Free Notes:

This recipe can actually be made completely gluten free by using almond flour for the crust in place of the all-purpose flour, and removing the tablespoon of flour in the frangipane filling with a teaspoon of starch (tapioca, corn, potato, or arrowroot work here).