These slices are great for serving a big crowd of cherry Bakewell lovers!
I am a huge cherry Bakewell lover which is exactly why I made these slices. Purely so that I could make a bigger version, those little Mr Kipling tarts just aren't enough for me, they only leave me wanting more! With these slices you get a little extra of that soft almond sponge, and they are a lot easier to make than trying to make individual tarts. I'll never understand those people who dislike glacé cherries and almond extract. My sister is one of those people, so I always have to warn her when I'm making recipes like these so that she avoids the kitchen, missing out on those beautiful aromas! Anyway, if you're here then it means you're like me so sharing these cherry bakewell slices may be as difficult as I found it! I hope you like this recipe, it does take a little longer because of the pastry element but thats key to a cherry Bakewell. So have fun with it!
If you love cherries and almond....
Check out my other recipes for more inspiration!
Recipe
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Serves: 16
Notes:
- It's easier to spread the icing on top of the cake whilst the cake is still in the tin so that it doesn't pour over the sides and creates neater edges.
- You can always make your own shortcrust pastry, but the ready-rolled one saves on time.
Ingredients
Base
- 375g ready-rolled shortcrust pastry
- 6 tbsp cherry jam
Sponge
- 150g ground almonds
- 150g plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- pinch of salt
- 200ml soya milk + 1tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 60g vegan butter, melted
- 120g caster sugar
- 1 tsp almond extract
Icing
- 70g icing sugar
- 1-2 tsp cold water
- 20g flaked almonds
- Glacé cherry halves
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180℃ fan and grease an 8x8 inch square cake tin.
- Roll out the ready-rolled shortcrust pastry and lift into the tin. Press the pastry into the sides and base so its flat and even, then prick with a fork all over.
- Chill the pastry for about 20 minutes in the fridge.
- Add a sheet of baking paper on top of the pastry base and fill with baking beans or dried rice. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes.
- Then removed the beans and bake the base for another 2 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
- Make the sponge. Place all of the ingredients for the sponge into a large bowl and use an electric hand whisk to beat them together until combined.
- Spread the cherry jam over the shortcrust base.
- Spoon the sponge batter on top of the jam and spread out evenly.
- Place into the oven to bake for about 35 minutes until a knife inserted comes out clean.
- Once baked, leave to cool in the tin - do not remove the cake from the cake tin.
- Make the icing. Mix the icing sugar with the cold water till you have a thick mixture. You may need to add more water. The icing needs to be thick but spreadable.
- Spread the icing over the cake and work quickly to move it all over the top and into the sides and corners. Scatter over flaked almonds and the glacé cherries whilst the icing is still wet.
- Leave to firm and set before slicing into 16 squares. Serve and enjoy!
- These cherry bakewell slices are best stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Christina
xx
