What is Treacle Tart?
Treacle tart is a beloved and classic British dessert that has been enjoyed for generations. It’s often associated with childhood memories and family gatherings. You can find this cake in the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling – “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” where it’s one of Harry’s favorite desserts.
The origins of treacle tart can be traced back to medieval England, where it was originally made with treacle, a byproduct of refining sugar from sugarcane or sugar beets. Treacle was used as a sweetener in many traditional British desserts. Over time, the treacle tart recipe evolved to use golden syrup as the primary sweetening agent.
Treacle Tart recipe
I decided to make a British gluten-free dessert for an internationally-flavored Thanksgiving. Trying to make a pastry lattice with gluten-free pastry was just a step too far. Treacle tart has a fairly misleading name, since treacle, or molasses, is not used. Rather, it is treacle’s sweeter, more palatable cousin, golden syrup. This is a uniquely British ingredient – I think the American equivalent would be something like corn syrup, but I’m not entirely sure.
This is basically a classic British pud, best served warm with custard. It reminds me of family Sunday lunches, of jumping back up to the table once the adults had finally finished talking and pudding was ready. For the drink, it would likely pair well with a cup of tea, coffee, port, cream liqueur, or sherry,
I’ve adapted the traditional recipe to make it gluten-free, but you can find the old-fashioned recipe of this tart here, including lattice top. Here is how to make simple treacle tarts.
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 8 oz gluten-free plain flour blend
- 4 oz butter
- 1 egg, beaten
For the filling
- 12 oz golden syrup
- 5 oz white breadcrumbs
- 1 lemon
Instructions
- For the pastry, rub the flour and butter together between your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Bring together with a little water and a small amount of the beaten egg.
- Cover in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for at least half an hour.
- Once the pastry is chilled and rested, sprinkle some flour on a worktop and rolling pin. Roll out until fairly thin. Place into a round pie dish and cut away the edges. Prick the base with a fork.
- Preheat the oven to 180oC.
- To make the filling, heat the golden syrup gently until it is a thin liquid, but do not let it boil. Finely grate about half the lemon zest, then squeeze in all the juice. Add the breadcrumbs and stir until it becomes a thick mixture.
- Spoon the mixture into the pastry case and bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes until the filling is set and golden brown.
- Leave to cool in the tin. Serve warm with custard or cream.
Notes
– To store, place your treacle tart in an airtight container and refrigerate it for up to 3 days. If you want to extend its shelf life even further, consider freezing it. To do so, allow the tart to cool completely, then wrap it tightly with cling film and cover it with aluminum foil. This way, your treacle tart can be stored in the freezer for as long as 3 months.
When you want to eat, there’s no need to defrost. You just need to reheat it in the oven for 15-20 minutes until it’s piping hot and ready to serve.
– Besides warm custard, you can serve treacle tart with clotted cream (a traditional accompaniment), vanilla ice cream, fresh berries (raspberries, strawberries, or blackberries), lemon zest, caramel sauce, almond flakes, or mint leaves.
– If you want a vegan treacle tart, you can use vegan butter and add baking powder to the recipe. You can add oatmeal, apples, or coconut to the filling to make it different.
Treacle Tart
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 8 oz gluten-free plain flour blend
- 4 oz butter
- 1 egg beaten
For the filling
- 12 oz golden syrup
- 5 oz white breadcrumbs
- 1 lemon
Instructions
- For the pastry, rub the flour and butter together between your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Bring together with a little water and a small amount of the beaten egg.
- Cover in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for at least half an hour.
- Once the pastry is chilled and rested, sprinkle some flour on a worktop and rolling pin. Roll out until fairly thin. Place into a round pie dish and cut away edges. Prick base with a fork.
- Preheat the oven to 180oC.
- To make the filling, heat the golden syrup gently until it is a thin liquid, but do not let it boil. Finely grate about half the lemon zest, then squeeze in all the juice. Add the breadcrumbs and stir until it becomes a thick mixture.
- Spoon the mixture into the pastry case and bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes until the filling is set and golden-brown.
- Leave to cool in the tin. Serve warm with custard or cream.
Notes
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