I’VE BEEN meaning to publish a really good home-made Bakewell tart recipe for ages now.

Without doubt the Bakewell tart is one of the UK’s favourite tarts - the intense flavour of almonds teases our tastebuds with a joyful comforting yum every time we take a bite.

Mr Kipling might be a lovely old fellow, but home-bakers can also make exceedingly good cakes!

Sadly, today the Bakewell tart is found mainly on the cake aisle of every supermarket up and down the country.

The Bakewell tart did indeed originate from the town of Bakewell in the Peak District in the 1860s and it has been a local delicacy ever since.

But like many classics this was the result of a misread recipe.

On this occasion it was by a hapless pub chef who had drunk one too many and got the recipe wrong when Mrs Greaves the mistress of the inn asked for a strawberry tart to be made for a couple of visiting noblemen.

According to local legend, the tart started life as a puff pastry pudding served warm.

This was an unexpected success, and so much so a business was quickly set up selling Bakewell puddings.

Over time the modern day version revolved into a shortcrust pastry tart served cold for a cardboard box, machine-made on a production-line, with thick and pale sweet pastry, filled with a measly spread of jam, laden down with sticky deep cracked fondant icing topping and a ungainly sad looking cherry placed in the middle.

Puff pastry seems to be more traditional, as quoted in the early Derbyshire records, but I like to make my Bakewell tarts with shortcrust pastry in individual bun tins.

I find it more substantial eating them without a plate, but by all means you can make a flan version with or without the icing.

The relatively straightforward matter of homemade pastry is a simple affair, but do opt for a higher butter ratio to ensure optimum crispness.

The jam is of course the order of the day here: raspberry I do consider more traditional, and it provides a beautifully sharp foil for the sweet.

Call the tart whatever you like, it’ll still be an exceedingly good fellow.

But a word of advice, don’t come to Bakewell in search of a pudding war.

Practice the word pudding on the way down on the M1 as you’re asking for trouble with the locals over this iconic pudding!

Recipe for a raspberry and coconut tea loaf Serves 8 Ingredients 150g/5oz butter, softened 150g/5oz caster sugar 3 eggs, lightly beaten 250g/9oz self-raising flour 110g/4oz desiccated coconut, plus extra to decorate 4 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 75g/3oz fresh raspberries Raspberry Icing 4 tablespoons raspberry jam 75g/3oz icing sugar 2 teaspoons water 2 tablespoons desiccated coconut Method