CHERRY & ALMOND TART

Serves 8

● 250g (9oz) plain flour

● 125g (4½oz) butter, cut into small cubes

● 3tbsp icing sugar

● 1 egg yolk, lightly whisked, plus 2-3tbsp cold water

● 800g (1lb 12oz) cherries, pitted

● 2 eggs, lightly whisked

● 120g (4¼oz) caster sugar

● 2tbsp plain flour

● 240ml (8½fl oz) double cream

● Vanilla extract

● 8tbsp ground almonds

● 50g (1¾oz) flaked almonds

● Crème fraîche, to serve

Put the 250g flour in a bowl and add the butter. Rub in with your fingers until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the icing sugar and stir the yolk through until the dough forms a ball, adding cold water to help. Knead gently on a lightly floured worktop. Roll the pastry out to the thickness of a pound coin. Lift up with a rolling pin and use it to line a 23cm, loose-bottomed, 4cm-deep tart tin. Press the pastry into the edges and up the sides. Trim the edges, leaving a slight overhang. Pop in the fridge for an hour.

When ready, preheat the oven to 190°C/fan 170°C/gas 5 and place a tray in the oven. Cover the pastry with a large round of greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans. Place on the tray in the oven and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave for 15 minutes. Take the beans and paper out, then pop back in the oven for 5-8 minutes, until the pastry is a light biscuit brown. Turn the oven down to 170°C/fan 150°C/gas 3.

Tip the cherries into the pastry case. Mix together the eggs, caster sugar, flour, cream, vanilla and ground almonds. Pour evenly into the pastry. Scatter with the flaked almonds. Cook for 40-50 minutes, or until golden, lightly puffed and just set in the middle. Serve in slices with crème fraîche.