Bakewell Tart

Sometimes I have a craving for something typically English and as the closest English store is in Grapevine (British Emporium) which is not close to where I live, I usually resort to converting an English recipe. One ingredient that most of the recipes I have for Bakewell Tart is semolina and I was unable to find the U.S. equivalent. This recipe, however, turned out great with ground almonds.



Ingredients:
4 oz butter (I used margarine)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp almond extract
1/4 cup flour
1 large egg
1 cup ground almonds (I used the G.E. version of the Magic Bullet to ground the almonds)
Raspberry jam

Icing:
1 cup icing sugar (the recipe was for 1 1/2 cups but I thought this was too much)
Water (enough to make the icing easy to spread on top with a spatula)

Shortcrust Pastry
(I used left over frozen puff pastry and it turned out fine with the flaky pastry)

1. Roll out the pastry to 1/2 cm thickness and put in a tart tin (I used a disposable pie plate)
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place wax paper on top and add a few beans or large breadcrumbs to stop the center from rising (you may need to pat it down when it comes out of the oven). Bake for 15-20 minutes and remove the beans/bread.
3. Meanwhile, cream the sugar and butter together until pale and fluffy then gradually add the egg, and almond extract (if it starts to curdle, add a little flour)
4. Fold in almonds and flour
5. Spread jam over the pastry. You don't need too much, about the amount you would put on bread.
6. Spoon the creamed mixture over the jam and even out using a spatula.
7. Bake for 30-35 mins until golden brown. Remove and cool on a wire rack.
8. Add water slowly to the icing sugar to make a smooth paste. Pour over tart until covered. I added some almond slices for decoration, but glace cherries are another good choice if you can find them.