Mincemeat Bakewell Tart

Mincemeat Bakewell Tart Recipe

I won’t lie to you, I’m flagging a little. My cough is keeping everyone awake at night and I feel particularly unfestive. I can’t smell the Christmas tree because I have a cold, and I can’t see the Christmas tree as I have some strange inflamed Iris thing going on with my right eye. Anyway, Lucy Loves isn’t a forum to discuss my current ailments, although, I do feel it’s helped getting it off my chest. My only consolation is to eat through this period of unwellness, and a large slice of Mincemeat Bakewell Tart seems a reasonable place to start.

Christmas is a time for all the puddings. I don’t mind a morsel of traditional Christmas pudding on the big day but it’s really just a vehicle of all the sauces that go with it. I also like to make a Chocolate Christmas pudding for my sister and the boys, but this year, I will be adding a Mincemeat Bakewell Tart to the ever growing list of things I need to bake in the next week. This is the usual mix of buttery pastry with an almond topping, but with the additional of a good layer of mincemeat. Make your own if you’re that person, if not a decent jar of shop bought is perfect. The pastry has a hint of orange zest and is soft and shortbread like. The whole delicious business is topped off with a drizzle of orange icing for sport. It’s a big thank you to the evergreen Good Housekeeping for the recipe inspiration.

Warm slathered in cream or brandy sauce or room temperature eaten standing up while you write yet another list, this joyous Mincemeat Bakewell is the festive pud you’re looking for. I can’t promise it has healing qualities, but the large amount of this pudding I’ve eaten hasn’t made me feel any worse.

Colourful and delicious for this Christmassy line up. I know it’s not the healthiest set of ingredients, but as I have previously mentioned my sod it it’s Christmas attitude is in full effect.

Make a start by buttering your 8 inch or 20cm loose bottom flan tin and pre heating your oven to 160 degrees fan assisted. Also, place a baking tray in the oven to heat up, this will help to stop any soggy bottoms later.

Next, start on the pastry. Either process, or mix in a bowl the plain flour, icing sugar and the zest of the orange. Follow in with the chopped cold butter and rub into the flour, or process, until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Once it’s breadcrumby, drop in the egg yolk and mix again.

Finally, add enough orange juice to create a soft dough. I used just short of the juice of half an orange.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and bring the dough together into a ball. Wrap in clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge for around 30 minutes.

Once chilled place the dough onto your floured surface and roll into a circle a couple of inches bigger than your flan tin.

Lay the pastry over your tin and press into the sides and base of the tin.

Trim the edges; I do this using a rolling pin which I just roll over the rim of the tin and the trimmings can then be pulled off neatly. Save this for a tiny batch of 6 jam tarts * I did, and ate 3 of them*.

Pop this into the fridge while you make the filling. The lack of need to blind bake this pastry base, makes this recipe even more appealing.

Either in the mixer, or in a bowl, beat the soft butter or Stork with the caster sugar until lighter in colour and texture.

Add the eggs, one at a time, mix again then mix in the splash of almond extract. Finally fold in the flour and ground almonds until you have a smooth batter.

Remove your lined flan tin from the fridge and spread on the mincemeat in a relatively even layer.

Slather on the almond batter, smoothing it out to cover the mincemeat.

Add a flourish of flaked almonds for luck, then pop the tart onto your pre heated tray and into your pre heated oven for around 35 minutes.

The Bakewell Tart is ready when it’s golden, firm and smelling divine.

Leave the tart to cool for around 15 minutes before removing from the tin. Utilise this time to whip up a little orange icing. Mix the icing sugar with some of the juice of the remaining half an orange. You may not need it all, just enough to create a drizzling consistency.

Then drizzle the top of your tart in any way you fancy.

Then eat it, in any way you fancy.

I love this Mincemeat take on an old classic. The filling is soft and nutty and the mincemeat is tart and there’s not a soggy bottom in sight. Apart from mine, that is.

Lucy x

Mincemeat Bakewell Tart Recipe

Makes one 8 inch tart, serving at least 6, if not 8 smaller people

You will need a food processor, if you have one, if not a bowl and a spoon and a well buttered, loose bottomed 8 inch flan tin

Pastry

175g plain flour, plus more for dusting

80g icing sugar

Zest of an orange, and some of the juice

100g cold butter, chopped

1 egg yolk

Filling

100g butter, softened, or use Stork for this

100g caster sugar

2 eggs

100g  ground almonds

50g plain flour

Few drops almond extract

250g mincemeat

25g flaked almonds

Icing

50g icing sugar

Juice half and orange, you may need less

Pre heat your oven to 160 degrees fan assisted and butter your 8 inch flan tin. Place a baking tray in the oven to heat up.

For the pastry mix the plain flour and the icing sugar with the orange zest. Next, add the pieces of cold butter and either process in the food processor or rub in with your fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Now, mix in the egg yolk, process, then add enough orange juice to create a soft dough; I used the juice from half an orange. Give the pastry a quick knead to bring it together then wrap in cling film and pop in the fridge to rest for around 30 minutes.

Once chilled, dust your work surface with some flour and roll the pastry out to a circle a couple of inches bigger than your flan tin. Lay the pastry over the tin and press into the edges. Trim any excess off leaving a neat edge. Pop back in the fridge while you make the filling.

For the filling, cream the soft butter or Stork together with the caster sugar until lighter in colour and texture. You can do this by hand, using a hand whisk or in your stand mixer. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well, then mix in the almond extract. Fold in the flour and ground almonds, until you have a smooth batter.

Remove your flan from the fridge and spoon on the mincemeat, spreading over the base in an even-ish layer. Scrape the almond based batter over the mincemeat and spread out. Sprinkle on the flaked almonds.

Place the tart on your pre heated oven tray then bake for around 30 to 35 minutes or until golden and well risen. Cover the tart in foil if it’s browning too quickly.

Leave to cool for 15 minutes. For the icing, mix the icing sugar with some orange juice until you have a drizzling consistency. Carefully remove the Bakewell tart from the tin and take off the base. Drizzle the icing over the top of your tart.

Serve in elegant slices with cream, ice cream or a dollop of seasonal brandy custard.

This will keep, wrapped in foil, for another 2 to 3 days.