Thanks to Lyle’s Golden Syrup for sponsoring this post
Amongst all the daily changes that have happened from the lockdown, cooking and baking remains something regular for me to enjoy! And even though there are still some issues with sourcing ingredients like eggs and flour, it’s a way to think creatively and make something comforting and delicious.
A treacle tart is a British classic of shortcrust pastry filled with a mixture of breadcrumbs and, most importantly, Lyle’s Golden Syrup which gives the tart that signature caramelised flavour (without even having to make caramel!). It’s a comforting flavour and in these times, that nostalgic comfort of foods from childhood is something I’m craving more and more.
Lyle’s Golden Syruphas created a special VE day-themed golden syrup tin which is on sale at the moment. Aiming to raise over £25,000, they’ll be donating 5p from every tin sold to the ‘Help for Heroes’ charity which supports those who have been injured in the Armed Forces. I’m sure with the current situation, this help will be all the more needed by those people.
Usually the filling is set with an egg but since they’re a bit hard to come by at the mo, I’ve adapted the recipe from my vegan pecan pie which is set with a mixture of oat milk & cornflour, enriched with butter. If you can’t get flour, you can always buy a pre-made shortcrust pastry from the supermarket! Also, as the filling uses up breadcrumbs, it’s a great way to put to use all those bits of stale bread you probably have from baking your lockdown sourdough bread!!
Treacle Tart (with fresh berry topping)
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 150 g plain white flour
- 75 g unsalted butter (or vegan block butter), cold, cubed
- 20 g icing sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2-3 tbsp milk or oat milk , cold
Filling:
- 300 g Lyle’s Golden Syrup
- 55 g butter or vegan butter
- 120 g milk or oat milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 60 g dried , fine breadcrumbs (I used sourdough ones)
Instructions
For the pastry:
- Combine all the pastry ingredients, in a food processor. Blitz to combine until you get a mealy, breadcrumb-like texture. Add the milk, starting with 2 tbsp, and pulse to combine. When you pinch some of the mixture together it should stick, forming a ball. If not, add the remaining 1 tbsp of milk and pulse that in.
- Tip the contents of the food processor out onto a clean work surface and bring it all together with your hands into a ball. Flatten into a disk and place into a resealable bag, in the fridge, to chill for at least 1 hour.
For the filling:
- Combine the golden syrup, butter, milk and salt in a small pot. Heat on a low heat until the butter has melted. Keep cooking until the mixture starts to gently bubble then remove from the heat. Stir in the lemon juice, cornflour and dried breadcrumbs. Set aside.
Line the tin:
- You’ll need a shallow 8 or 9-inch flan tin (tart tin) or, if you want a rectangular tart like I have here, use a 7 x 9.5-inch roasting dish.
- Dust your work surface with some flour, remove the chilled pastry from the resealable bag and place onto the flour. Dust with some extra flour on top. Gently roll the pastry out into either a circle or rectangle, depending on the tin you’re using, which is around 1-inch wider all the way around than your chosen tin.
- Lift the pastry up and drape over the tin, lifting the edges and gently lowering them onto the tin. Press firmly into the corners and edges then trim away any excess pastry. Prick the base all over with a fork.
- Place the lined tin into the freezer (or fridge if you don’t have enough space) for 10 minutes as you preheat the oven to 160°C fan (325°F) or 180°C non-fan (350°F).
Blind bake the pastry:
- Once preheated, line the pastry with a layer of baking paper, fill with baking beans (or rice/pie weights) and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove the baking paper and bake for a further 5-10 minutes until the pastry looks dry and cooked through.
Fill and do the final bake:
- Give the filling a stir and then pour it into the pastry case. Return to the oven for a further 20-25 minutes until the filling is set where it barely wobbles when the tin is shaken.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
- Decorate with fresh berries, if desired, just before serving.
Wow looks delicious!
Thanks, Ella!