Bakewell Tart with Raspberry Preserves

From the kitchen of Carly

Buttery shortcrust holds a layer of bright raspberry preserves topped with a delicate almond custard that bakes golden and tender. This classic British tart balances tart fruit with rich, vanilla-scented filling for an elegant dessert that feels special without demanding much effort.

Bakewell Tart with Raspberry Preserves

Bakewell tart is buttery pastry, jammy base, and an almond filling that's somewhere between custard and cake, all baked until golden and still a touch creamy in the middle. The raspberry preserves stay tart against the sweet almond sponge, and Marcona almonds make the crumb finer and more tender than regular ones. This is a showstopper that looks harder than it is.

Prep
n/a
Cook
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Total
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Servings
4
Difficulty
medium

Ingredients

4 servings

  • 1 1/4 cupall purpose flour
  • 1/2 tspsugar
  • 1/4 tspsalt
  • 6 tbspchilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 3 tbspice water
  • 3/4 cupraspberry preserves
  • 1/2vanilla bean, split lengthwise
  • 1/2 cupsugar
  • 1/2 cupunsalted butter, melted, cooled
  • 4 largeegg yolks
  • 3 largeegg whites
  • 1/4 tspalmond extract
  • 1 pinchsalt
  • 1 cuproasted salted Marcona almonds*
  • 1Lightly sweetened whipped cream

Instructions

  1. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse for 5 seconds. Scatter in the butter and use short on/off bursts to cut it in until the mixture resembles very coarse meal. Pour in 3 tablespoons of ice water and blend until moist clumps form, adding more ice water a teaspoon at a time if the dough looks dry. Turn it out, gather into a ball, and flatten into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.

  2. Heat the oven to 375°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a 12- to 13-inch round, then drape it over a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Trim the overhang down to about 1/2 inch, fold it inward, and press the sides up so the crust sits 1/4 to 1/3 inch above the pan rim. Slide the crust into the freezer and let it firm up for about 10 minutes.

  3. Line the crust with foil and fill it with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until the sides are set, about 25 minutes, then lift out the foil and beans. Keep baking until the crust turns pale golden, piercing it with a fork anywhere it puffs up, another 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool for 30 minutes, then drop the oven temperature to 350°F.

  4. Spread the raspberry preserves in an even layer across the bottom of the cooled crust. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean halves into a medium bowl, add the sugar, and work them together with the back of a fork until the seeds are evenly distributed. Whisk in the butter, egg yolks, egg whites, almond extract, and salt until smooth. Finely grind the almonds in the food processor and stir them into the filling, then pour the whole mixture into the crust.

  5. Bake the tart until the top is nicely browned and the center feels set, 30 to 35 minutes. Rest it on a rack until just slightly warm, about 45 minutes.

  6. Press up on the tart pan bottom to release the tart, and serve it slightly warm or at room temperature alongside lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Blind bake the crust until pale golden, not deep brown, so the filling doesn't bake on top of an overcooked base. The 12 to 15 minutes after removing weights is enough.
  • Scrape the vanilla seeds from the pod with a small spoon and really mash them into the sugar first, so they distribute evenly throughout the filling instead of clumping.
  • Pour the almond filling onto the jam when it's completely cooled and spread flat, not warm. Cold jam holds its shape and won't muddy into the filling as it bakes.
  • Finely grind the Marconas in a food processor but don't go too far or they'll turn to butter. You want a dry meal, not paste.

Variations

  • Skip the vanilla bean and use 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract instead, whisked in with the egg whites.
  • Swap the raspberry for apricot preserves or a good quality strawberry jam if you want something brighter.
  • Brush the warm tart with a thin apricot glaze (apricot jam thinned with a little water and strained) for shine and a delicate finish.
  • Top with sliced or slivered almonds before baking instead of grinding them into the filling, for crunch and height.

Make ahead and storage

Keep the tart at room temperature covered loosely for up to 2 days, or refrigerate for up to 4 days. Freezing is not recommended since the filling becomes dense and the crust loses its snap. Reheat gently in a 300°F oven for 10 minutes if you want to serve it warm.