Traditional Treacle Tart
There's something about this time of year that really gets me in the mood to bake. Maybe it's the colder weather that makes me crave comfort food or maybe it's the festive spirit in the air that makes me want to eat celebratory food.
I'm a big fan of old-fashioned desserts, the kind of thing you used to get at school and really enjoy on a cold day. This recipe is a true family favourite that, for me, is one of the best ways to round off a meal with a good drizzle of cream or custard or ice-cream or all three on top!
Traditional Treacle Tart
Serves 10-12
For the pastry:
125g plain flour
65g unsalted butter, diced
pinch salt
1½ tbsp icing sugar
zest ½ lemon
1 egg yolk
1 egg white
For the filling:
175g fresh white breadcrumbs (I like to whizz sourdough in the food processor)
725g golden syrup
Finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, plus 1½ tbsp lemon juice
2 medium free-range eggs, lightly beaten
3 tbsp double cream
For the pastry, place the flour and butter in a food processor and process until you have coarse crumbs. Add salt, sugar and lemon zest and process until combined. Add the egg yolk then enough cold water (about 1 tablespoon) to form a dough. Transfer the dough to a floured bench, knead lightly, sandwich between two large sheets of clingfilm and set aside in the fridge 30 minutes. Roll the pastry between the two sheets of clingfilm to a thickness of 2mm, using two stacked 2 pence coins as guides, then use it to line a 23cm x 3.5cm deep loose-bottomed flan tin. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
Put a baking sheet into the oven and preheat it to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Lightly prick the chilled pastry base with a fork then line the pastry case with a crumpled sheet of baking paper and a layer of baking beans/uncooked rice. Put the case onto the hot baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes until the pastry edges are biscuit-coloured. Remove the baking paper and beans/rice, brush with the beaten egg white and then return it to the oven for 5-6 minutes or until the base of the case is golden brown. Remove and lower the oven temperature to 170°C/fan150°C/gas 3½.
Put the breadcrumbs in a large mixing bowl. Stand the tin of golden syrup in a pan of hot water to warm through and become runny, but don’t let it get too hot. Weigh out the required amount into a saucepan and stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice, followed by the beaten eggs and cream. Drizzle the warm syrup mixture over the breadcrumbs and allow it to sink in, giving a very gentle stir, if necessary, to incorporate all the breadcrumbs (overmixing will give you a dense, chewy filling). Set to one side for 5 minutes to allow the crumbs to swell slightly.
Pour the mixture into the pastry case and evenly distribute the breadcrumbs through the syrupy mixture. Bake for 45-50 minutes, turning the tin now and then so it cooks evenly, until the filling is just set and golden brown around the edges. Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then transfer to a serving plate and serve, cut into thin wedges, with some extra thick double cream or ice cream.
I'm a big fan of old-fashioned desserts, the kind of thing you used to get at school and really enjoy on a cold day. This recipe is a true family favourite that, for me, is one of the best ways to round off a meal with a good drizzle of cream or custard or ice-cream or all three on top!
Traditional Treacle Tart
Serves 10-12For the pastry:
125g plain flour
65g unsalted butter, diced
pinch salt
1½ tbsp icing sugar
zest ½ lemon
1 egg yolk
1 egg white
For the filling:
175g fresh white breadcrumbs (I like to whizz sourdough in the food processor)
725g golden syrup
Finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, plus 1½ tbsp lemon juice
2 medium free-range eggs, lightly beaten
3 tbsp double cream
For the pastry, place the flour and butter in a food processor and process until you have coarse crumbs. Add salt, sugar and lemon zest and process until combined. Add the egg yolk then enough cold water (about 1 tablespoon) to form a dough. Transfer the dough to a floured bench, knead lightly, sandwich between two large sheets of clingfilm and set aside in the fridge 30 minutes. Roll the pastry between the two sheets of clingfilm to a thickness of 2mm, using two stacked 2 pence coins as guides, then use it to line a 23cm x 3.5cm deep loose-bottomed flan tin. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
Put a baking sheet into the oven and preheat it to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Lightly prick the chilled pastry base with a fork then line the pastry case with a crumpled sheet of baking paper and a layer of baking beans/uncooked rice. Put the case onto the hot baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes until the pastry edges are biscuit-coloured. Remove the baking paper and beans/rice, brush with the beaten egg white and then return it to the oven for 5-6 minutes or until the base of the case is golden brown. Remove and lower the oven temperature to 170°C/fan150°C/gas 3½.
Put the breadcrumbs in a large mixing bowl. Stand the tin of golden syrup in a pan of hot water to warm through and become runny, but don’t let it get too hot. Weigh out the required amount into a saucepan and stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice, followed by the beaten eggs and cream. Drizzle the warm syrup mixture over the breadcrumbs and allow it to sink in, giving a very gentle stir, if necessary, to incorporate all the breadcrumbs (overmixing will give you a dense, chewy filling). Set to one side for 5 minutes to allow the crumbs to swell slightly.
Pour the mixture into the pastry case and evenly distribute the breadcrumbs through the syrupy mixture. Bake for 45-50 minutes, turning the tin now and then so it cooks evenly, until the filling is just set and golden brown around the edges. Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then transfer to a serving plate and serve, cut into thin wedges, with some extra thick double cream or ice cream.
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