For next time: I just saw a recipe which suggesting throwing in a couple of grated pears, some pecans and swapping some of the syrup for maple syrup.
Treacle tart has been a little bit of a bugbear of mind. For a dish that is supposed to epitomise frugality (albeit in it’s most delicious form), most of the recipes seem rather complicated and they always seem to turn out a bit chewy. I found a Nigel Slater article in the guardian which promised the recipe he gave was a going back to basics and I think he’s got it just right. I added half a thumb of finely grated ginger (don’t peel, just grate on the fine bit of a box grater) instead of lemon zest and I rinsed out the last of the bottle of syrup with a smidge of boiling water but, other than that, it’s just twice as much golden syrup to breadcrumbs (brown sliced in this case). The result was soft but not sloppy.
I used my perenially favourite hot pastry as the base as it’s so crisp and that really contrasts well with the soft filling.
A little tip is, if your golden syrup isn’t flowing very easily, stick it in the microwave for a short blast or in a container of very hot water. Another little tip is, don’t eat it with Ben and Jerry’s fossil fuel ice cream. My husband assures me that the two things are lovely separately but don’t go too well together. I did say he might prefer some cream on it. Actually, vanilla ice cream is good too. This serves 6-8 people.
Treacle tart
Ingredients
- Pastry case
- 600g golden syrup
- 300g breadcrumbs
- 1/2 thumb finely grated ginger (or the zest of a lemon if you’re being more traditional)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Warm the syrup in a saucepan and then mix in the breadcrumbs and grated ginger.
2. Put in the pastry case and smooth the top
3. Bake for 20 mins
I bet it tastes good!