Treacle Tart

Directions

• Make shortcrust pastry: measure flour into a large bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (or use a food processor). Add about 3 tbsp cold water and mix to a firm dough, wrap in cling film and chill for about 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6 and put a heavy baking tray in the oven to heat. Grease a deep 18cm loose-bottomed fluted flan tin with butter.
• Remove about 150g of pastry from the main ball and set aside for the lattice top.
• Roll out remaining pastry thinly on a lightly floured surface and line the prepared tin. Prick the base with a fork.
• Place reserved pastry for lattice on cling film and roll out thinly. Egg wash the pastry and chill in the fridge; do not cut into strips yet.
• Make the filling: heat the golden syrup gently in a large pan without boiling.
• Once melted, add breadcrumbs, lemon zest (and lemon juice if using) to the syrup; if mixture looks runny, add more breadcrumbs.
• Pour the filling into the lined tin and level the surface.
• Remove reserved pastry from fridge and cut into long strips about 1cm wide. Ensure strips are longer than tart edges.
• Egg wash the edge of the pastry in the tin and weave the lattice over the filling, leaving strips hanging over the edge.
• Trim excess strips by pressing with the tin edge to create a neat finish.
• Bake on the preheated baking tray for about 10 minutes until pastry starts to colour, then reduce oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. If lattice browns too quickly, cover with foil.
• Bake a further 25–30 minutes until pastry is golden brown and filling is set.
• Remove tart from oven and leave to firm up in the tin. Serve warm or cold.