Recipes
6 min read
Mum’s damson & almond tart
The recipe everyone asks for in the kitchen. Make it with damsons, or plums if you’re not lucky enough to live in the valley.
This is the tart people ask about more than anything else in the kitchen. Mum first made it in the eighties with damsons from the bank, and it hasn’t really changed. It works beautifully with plums too.
You will need
A 23cm tart tin lined with sweet shortcrust and baked blind. 125g soft butter, 125g caster sugar, 2 eggs, 125g ground almonds, a spoon of plain flour, and about 400g damsons, halved and stoned (a fiddly job: put the radio on).
Method
Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Beat the butter and sugar until pale, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Fold in the almonds and flour. Spread the frangipane into the pastry case and press the damsons in, cut side up, as close together as you can.
Bake for 40–45 minutes, until the top is golden and just firm in the middle. Leave to cool for at least half an hour.
To serve
Warm, with a spoon of clotted cream. In the kitchen we finish each slice with a little damson syrup from the jam pan. The next day, it’s even better.
02 — Field notes
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Recipes
6 min read
Mum’s damson & almond tart
The recipe everyone asks for in the kitchen. Make it with damsons, or plums if you’re not lucky enough to live in the valley.
Come and see what’s ready.
The shop opens at nine, the kettle’s on by ten, and the fields are open for picking most days from June to October.