Cranberry Bakewell Tart

I’ve got another perfect pie recipe for you to take to the holidays this year- this is a twist on a classic bakewell tart with an almond frangipane filling on top of a layer of cranberry jam. I love frangipane, so a bakewell tart has always been one of my favorites, and the cranberry jam is the perfect way to bring this around to the holidays.

I like to dust the top of my tart with powdered sugar, although I know it’s more classic to top a bakewell with a simple icing- you can do whichever you prefer! I find this is a really easy one to make, very simple but very delicious. Let me show you how to put it together!

How to Make a Cranberry Bakewell Tart

To start off, you want to make the tart crust. You can either make it from scratch from the recipe below, use a shortbread crust if you prefer, or you can even use a store bought roll of pie crust. I prefer the homemade version because it’s a little sweeter, but any choice will work beautifully here. Let your crust freeze for at least 30 minutes before partially baking it.

The filling uses fairly simple ingredients, and I’m using a jar of spiced cranberry jam from Trader Joes- I know there’s a few brands that make cranberry jam this time of year, or you can even use cranberry sauce if you prefer, though it will be a little less sweet and more tart.

Once you have a partially baked crust, you want to spread your cranberry jam in an even layer on the bottom of the tart shell.

For the filling, stir together the almond flour, sugar, and salt first. Then add in your softened butter, egg, egg white, vanilla extract, and almond extract and give everything a good stir. I find that as long as you are working with room temperature ingredients, this is easy to do by hand.

Dollop the almond mixture on top of the jam in the tart shell, and then spread it into an even layer. This is easier if you dollop the filling all over the top so you avoid smushing the jam to the edges as you spread.

Then it’s off to the oven until everything is golden brown all over on top. I like to do a simple powdered sugar dusting once it’s cooled, but a simple icing is also an option here if you prefer it! Slice and enjoy!

Tips & Tricks for the Perfect Cranberry Bakewell Tart

Here are my tips and tricks to help make this process simple!

• Do I have to make my own crust? No, you can use the recipe I have below, a shortbread cookie dough pressed into the tart pan, or even a roll of store bought pie crust if you prefer!
• Do I need to freeze the tart shell? Yes, if you are making the recipe I have below, it needs to be completely frozen before baking. This helps prevent the shell from shrinking too much (although you might have some shrinking and that’s ok), and let’s the butter rechill after you work with the dough.
• How do I know when the shell is partially baked? I like to bake mine until the edges just start becoming golden brown. The tart doesn’t bake for too long after filling it, so I like to take the crust pretty far to ensure it gets baked through.
• Do I need to use cranberry jam? You can use any flavor of jam you prefer here, although I really love cranberry jam if you’re bringing this tart to a holiday dinner. A classic option is cherry, and raspberry is also amazing in a bakewell tart.
• Dollop the almond filling all over the top instead of spooning it all directly into the middle of the tart. This helps ensure that you don’t mush all of the jam to the sides while spreading the almond mixture on top.
• How do I know when the tart is finished baking? The filling should become deeply and fairly evenly brown all over the top when it’s ready to pull out.
• Can I add icing on top instead? Yes, feel free to top this tart with icing if you prefer. Wait until it is cooled completely before icing or dusting with powdered sugar.
• I’m at about 5,000 ft. above sea level, and I find that most people who live between about 3,000-7,000 ft. above sea level do not need to make any adjustments to my recipes.

Enjoy!

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Cranberry Bakewell Tart

Servings 8 slices

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter chilled and cubed
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the filling:

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup cranberry jam

Instructions

For the crust:

1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, powdered sugar, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. You want to blend in the butter to fairly small chunks here, smaller than you might for a traditional pie crust, around the size of very small peas.
2. In a small bowl, beat together the egg and vanilla. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, and stir together until a dough starts to form. Turn out onto a floured surface and finish forming the dough into a disc, kneading gently to pull the dough together completely.
3. Roll out the dough to match the size of your tart pan. Carefully transfer the dough to your tart pan and pinch off the excess dough. Poke a few holes in the bottom of the dough using a fork. Cover and freeze the tart pan with the crust until completely frozen, 30 to 45 minutes.
4. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Bake the tart shell straight from the freezer for 10-15 minutes, or until it starts to become golden brown but is not fully baked through. Remove from the oven and set aside while you make the filling.

For the filling:

1. Keep your oven on at 350 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together the almond flour, granulated sugar, and salt until well combined.
2. Add in the softened butter, egg, egg white, almond extract, and vanilla extract and begin to work everything together with a spatula or spoon. You want to mix until the mixture is all consistent, though it’s ok if you have a couple of very small butter lumps.
3. Into your partially baked tart crust, spread the cranberry jam in an even layer on the bottom of the tart.
4. Scoop the almond mixture into dollops all over the top of the jam to make it easier to spread, and then use the back of a spoon or a small offset spatula to spread the almond mixture into an even layer over the top of the jam.
5. Bake the tart for 24-28 minutes, or until the top is golden brown all over. Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool to room temperature before unmolding it and optionally dusting with powdered sugar and serving. Enjoy!

Nicole Hampton

Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!

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