This Strawberry Almond Tart is not just a stunner, it’s also a wonderful way to use a bounty of berries and is perfect for a picnic since it is best at room temperature.If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere with strawberries all year round and peak seasons twice a year, like I do, then this is a delicious way to get your strawberry fix.
If you love fruity desserts, try this mixed berry crumble or this rustic almond plum tart too.
One of the first desserts I ever made and loved enough to keep making was a gorgeous Lemon Almond Tart, with a layer of lemon curd and a rich almond filling in a tart shell. I love that recipe so much and then lost it. Later I learned, the almond filling that I loved so much was actually called frangipane and now I make it often.
Since then, I’ve used it in many recipes including this baklava frangipane tart, pear almond tart and this apple frangipane tart, and more. I just can’t get enough of it. This French almond filling is rich and creamy and works well with so many fruits as well as being the base of many other tart recipes.
For instance, this Strawberry Almond Tart has a lot of similarities to a classic bakewell tart.
What is a bakewell tart?
A bakewell tart is an English dessert composed of a of a shortcrust tart shell covered in a layer of cherry jam then in a layer frangipane and baked until golden. A classic bakewell is then covered with a layer of icing but to keep the sweetness down, I left the top un-iced.
Because this is such a flexible little tart, you could even use tinned fruits if you’re in a rush and guests are about to start knocking at your door, just make sure to drain them and dry them of on paper towel first. This also means you can make this type of tart any time of year.
How to serve Strawberry Almond Tart
This tart is best served warm or at room temperature so make sure to take it out of the fridge at least half an hour before serving or with 20 minutes of coming out of the oven. You can reheat it in the oven too.
Serve it with fresh pouring cream or whipped cream, custard or creme anglais or with ice cream. I served this one with this Homemade Strawberry Topping.
How to make Strawberry Almond Tart
This gorgeous almond tart recipe is easy. I start with my easy sweet shortcrust pastry recipe, which comes together in minutes in the food processor, then;
- Beat together butter and sugar until light and creamy
- Add eggs and beat them through
- Finally, add almond meal (finely ground almonds or almond flour) and a little flour and mix it all together.
To put this fresh strawberry tart together you just spread a layer of jam in the par-baked tart shell, top it with the frangipane mixture and then lay some strawberry halves and almonds all over the top. Now bake it until it’s golden and slightly puffed up.
Do I need to blind bake this tart?
It’s really up to you. The base of the pastry shell won’t cook crisp if you don’t blind bake the tart. That being the case, it will be cooked through but just soft as opposed to crisp and flaky.
The other difference I’ve noticed is flavour. Both ways of baking the tart results in a lovely tart but the flavour is definitely better in the tart with blind baked shell.
Substitutions
The real beauty of a frangipane tart is that you can use just about any flavours you like.
- Fruit curds like this lemon curd or blood orange curd are great spread over the base before topping with the frangipane filling as are jams and fruit spreads or preserves.
- Nice big plump pieces of fruit are lovely too like berries, plums, cherries, pears, apples – this list goes on and on and on 🙂 I’d give just about any fruit a go.
- You can use any of your favourite nuts to make the filling. Just place them in a blender or food processor and process them until they resemble a grainy flour.
- If you don’t feel like making your own pastry, you can use store-bough shortcrust but I urge you to make it from scratch. It’s actually very easy and the flavour is far superior to any shop-bought brands.
Can you freeze bakewell tart / almond tart?
Yes. Make sure to wait until it’s totally cooled before wrapping well in plastic wrap and placing in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight.
Kept in the fridge, this tart will keep well for 3-4 days. It’s possible to leave this at room temperature if the weather is cool for 4-5 hours but after that, it’s best kept refrigerated due to the fresh fruit.
More lovely strawberry recipes
- Fruit Custard Tart
- Strawberry custard tart
- Simple Strawberry Flan
- Coconut Strawberry Cupcakes
- Strawberry White Chocolate Truffles
- Strawberry Panna Cotta
- Strawberry Chocolate Petit Fours
Strawberry Almond Tart
Ingredients
FOR THE TART PASTRY
- 113 g unsalted butter, cubed & chilled (1 stick / ½ cup)
- 195 g plain (all-purp) flour (1 ½ cups / 6.9oz)
- 2 tablespoons icing sugar (notes 1)
- 2 egg yolks, from large eggs
- 2-3 tablespoon cold milk (only as much as needed)
FOR THE FRANGIPANE FILLING
- ½ cup white granulated sugar (100g / 3.5oz)
- 113 g unsalted butter, softened (1 stick / ½ cup)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup almond meal (almond flour) (100g / 3.5oz)
- 35 g plain (all-purp) flour (¼ cup / 1.2oz)
- ½ cup strawberry jam (150g / 5.3oz)
- 1 ½ cups halved strawberries (375g / 13.2oz)
- 2 tablespoons flaked / sliced almonds
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
- 9 inch fluted tart tin
Instructions
FOR THE TART PASTRY
- Place the flour and icing sugar in a food processor and blitz to combine. Add the butter and process for about 20 seconds until the butter pieces are about the size of a pea.
- Add the egg yolks and, with the processor running on the lowest setting, start pouring in the milk. Only use as much milk as you need for it to start clumping.
- Tip the dough out onto a sheet of baking paper and use the edges of the paper to help pull it together (so you don't warm it up with your hands). Gently pull it into a disk shape, wrap it in the baking paper and place it in the fridge for at least half an hour.
- Dust a clean work surface with flour and place the cold dough on top, then dust the top of the dough with a little flour too. Roll it out to a 10.5 inch circle about 5mm thick.
- Preheat the oven to 180C / 350F / 160C fan forced.
- LIne the base of an 9 inch fluted tart tin with baking paper. Roll the dough over top of the rolling pin, then lift it and lower it over the baking tin and unroll it. Press the dough into the corners and up the sides. Roll the rolling pin over the top to trim off the overhang.
- Line the tart shell with baking paper and fill it with rice (or pie weights), making sure to press it right into the corners, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the paper and rice and bake for a further 10 minutes.
FOR THE FRANGIPANE FILLING:
- While the tart shell cools a little, beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
- Sift over the flour, then add the almond meal and beat them in (until just combined).
- Once the tart shell has cooled for at least 15 minutes, spread the strawberry jam over the base. Dollop the frangipane filling all over the top and then spread it out level all the way round.
- Randomly place the strawberry halves over the top, then sprinkle the almonds around in the gaps.
- Bake for 40 minutes until nicely golden on top and cooked in centre. The centre should not feel soggy when you gently press it.
Notes
- I use a standard 20ml Australian tablespoon (= 4 teaspoons worldwide)
- All ovens vary – always test for doneness 3-5 minutes before the recipe suggests
- For best results, you should always weigh ingredients like flour and sugar. Kitchen scales are relatively cheap but if you can’t weigh the ingredients, use the spoon and level method (don’t scoop).
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30 Comments on “Strawberry Almond Tart”
Hello,
I noticed that in the recipe you mentioned a 9 inch baking tin, but in the notes you say that you used an 8 inch tin. Just wanted to double-check which size I should use. Really looking forward to making this, thank you!
So sorry for the confusion, DC but thanks for letting me know. This one was made in a 9 inch pan. I’ll amend the post.
Hi Marie
I’m giving this recipe a first attempt (very excited!)
I’m on the process to make the pastry and I’m sure I followed the instructions to a tee, but the dough is quite wet – feels really creamy. It doesn’t seem right. Ive used two egg yolks and not all the milk recommended and can’t understand why. Any ideas?
Thanks
Laura
Hi Laura. Did you weigh your flour? Was your butter really cold? If yes to both of those it may be that you processed it too long until the butter has worked through the pastry instead of being little pieces within the mix. If that’s the case, it should still work but won’t be as flaky. Make sure you give the pastry a good rest. If you definitely think it’s too wet, you can add some flour. This can be done while you’re rolling it out, adding a good bit to the work surface and top of the dough before you roll. If it’s sticking to your work surface or rolling pin, just add a bit more flour, so that it doesn’t stick.
Thanks for replying so quickly!
I ended up redoing and I added less butter and had it in the processor for less time. I think the time was the answer. It ended up a bit dry and fell into pieces after the chill time but i was able to piece it all together in the pan and make do.
Almost ready – but looking good so far!
Also to clarify, when cooling the last 40 minutes, is this on 160C fan forced still?
Yes, sounds like it was just in the processor too long. Yes, still on 160C (fan) for the final cooking time.
I’m half way through making this and my mouth is watering. It’s smelling delicious. Thank you.
It really does smell divine, this one.
I can’t wait to cook this. Do you have the measurements in grams and kilograms?
Hi Greg, I’ve updated the recipe card with more measurements now. Happy Baking 🙂
Hi Marie, just wondering if this could be made with frozen strawberries/other berries? And if so would you thaw them first or use frozen?
Thanks
Hello Alice, blueberries might be best and no don’t thaw them first. The strawberries should work too but they do tend to release a lot of water which could make the pastry soggy. They’re also not the prettiest frozen berry. Whichever berry you use, keep it frozen until the second you need to add it and try not to move them around too much.
Thanks for the advice! I’ll give it a go. Frangipane tarts are one of my favourite things ever, but I always seem to get cravings for berries when they’re out of season XD
I’ve used this recipe many times and I love it. It’s worked well with strawberries, raspberries and plums.
I notice you’ve changed the recipe lately and are now suggesting blind baking the pastry. This makes it a little less of a “quick and easy” so wondered why you made the change? I think the previous recipe was baking the filling and pastry at the same time – will this still work with your recipe as written? I stupidly didn’t save your previous version!
Hello Penny, so happy you love the recipe. The recipe hasn’t actually changed except for the blind baking – I just prefer the crispier tart shell it gives. You can bake it all as one as you normally have. I love the different flavours you’ve tried 🙂
This tart is just beautiful! I love the way the fresh strawberries look from the top, just the best way to use nature’s bounty!
This is a beautiful tart Marie! I miss local strawberries, but happy to read that I can use any type of fruit, or even tinned fruit, in this tart! Happy weekend!
Thanks so much, Leanne. Happy weekend to you too 🙂
Such a quick and easy recipe! So excited to try. Thanks
Thanks Don, Hope you enjoy it 🙂
Seriously so beautiful, Marie! What a lovely dessert – I will definitely try it soon! I love anything with strawberry.
Thanks so much, Alexandra. Hope you enjoy it 🙂
Marie, such a beautiful tart! Love the rich almond filling – it’s so wonderful with the strawberries!
Thanks so much, Kelly 🙂
I’ve always wanted to attempt my own frangipan. Does the almond meal alone give it enough of an almond flavor? I love a very distinct almond flavor so thought for sure it would ask for some sort of almond extract. But don’t want to add if there is already enough of an almond flavor from the flour.
It’s really easy Kirsten. It’s only a delicate flavour. If you want an intense almond flavour (like in marzipan), I would add some almond extract. I’d think 1/2 to 1 teaspoon would do the trick. Happy baking 🙂
A great inspirational site. I enjoy it.
Thanks so much Rasheeda 😀
The recipe says to put the dough in a tart tin with removable bottom but your pictures show a white Corning tart pan. Any reason? The recipe is very tempting and I can’t wait to try it.
Hi there, I use a normal non-stick metal tart tin. It’s just a plate in the pictures. Definitely give it try. It’s a great way to use strawberries ?