Serve with sweetened whipped cream - yum!

Ingredients

• 2 sheets pre-rolled frozen flaky puff pastry, defrosted
• 100 grams butter
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond essence
• 2 eggs
• 70 gram packet ground almonds
• ¾ cup self-raising flour, sifted
• 20 cherries (approximately), stoned

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Grase a 20cm x 30cm slice tin or line with baking paper.
2. Place puff pastry sheets on top of each other; roll out on a floured bench to about 30cm square. Trim to fit the base and sides of the slice tin. Cut the remaining pastry into 1cm lengths and set aside.
3. Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla or almonds essence together until light and creamy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Stir in the ground almonds and flour. Spread cake mixture into pastry case.
5. Place the reserved strips of pastry on top of the cake mixture to make a diamond grid pattern. Place a cherry in the centre of each diamond.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 180ºC for a further 20-25 minutes until filling is cooked. Slice and serve dusted with icing sugar if wished.

Cooks Tips

Allyson's tip

- If cherries are out of season, use well-drained canned cherries.