Almond Cheese-cakes

Ingredients

• 0.5 pound (about 225g) Sweet almonds (To be blanched and peeled before use)
• 0.5 ounce (about 15g) Bitter almonds (Bitter almonds add a distinct flavour; if unavailable, use the same quantity of apricot kernels as a historical substitute — but use sparingly as they are potent)
• 1 ounce (about 28g) Butter (Melted)
• 0.5 pound (about 225g) Sifted sugar (Use caster sugar for easiest sifting)
• 4 yolks Egg yolks (Not beaten — add them directly as whole yolks)
• 0.5 teaspoon Essence of lemon (Lemon extract or a concentrated lemon essence)
• 0.5 teaspoon Ratafia (A bitter almond-flavoured liqueur or essence; almond extract can be used as a close modern equivalent)
• 1 sheet (enough to line your tart pans) Rich puff pastry (Ready-made all-butter puff pastry works well for beginners; roll it thin before lining the pans)

Instructions

1. 1Place the sweet almonds (225g / ½ lb) in a heatproof bowl and pour over enough boiling water to cover them fully. Leave for 2 minutes, then drain. Once cool enough to handle, pinch each almond between your fingers to pop the skin off — it should slip away easily. Pat the almonds dry with a clean cloth. Do the same for the bitter almonds (15g / ½ oz). Blanching simply means removing the skins so the almond filling is smooth and pale in colour.
2. 2Using a pestle and mortar (or a food processor on short pulses), pound or process the blanched sweet and bitter almonds together until they are broken down into a rough, coarse meal — not too fine. You want texture, not a smooth paste. The mixture will feel slightly damp and look crumbly. If you are using a food processor, pulse in short 2-second bursts and stop often to check the texture.
3. 3Place the butter (28g / 1 oz) in a small saucepan over a low heat and melt it gently — do not let it brown or bubble. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool for a minute. In a mixing bowl, combine the melted butter with the sifted sugar (225g / ½ lb). Stir well with a wooden spoon or spatula until the sugar is moistened and starts to combine. Add the four egg yolks one at a time — do not beat them first, simply drop them in whole and stir each one in before adding the next.
4. 4Add the pounded almonds to the butter, sugar, and egg yolk mixture. Stir everything together thoroughly until the almonds are evenly distributed throughout. Now add the half teaspoonful of essence of lemon and the half teaspoonful of ratafia. Stir again to combine all the flavourings evenly into the almond filling. The mixture should look like a thick, slightly grainy paste.
5. 5Preheat your oven to 190°C (375°F / Gas Mark 5). This gives the oven time to come fully up to temperature while you line your tart pans, so the pastry bakes properly from the moment it goes in.
6. 6Lightly dust a clean work surface with flour. Unroll or lay out your puff pastry sheet and roll it to about 3mm (⅛ inch) thickness if it is not already thin. Using a round cutter or the rim of a glass slightly larger than your tart pans, cut out circles of pastry. Gently press each circle into the individual tart pans, pressing into the base and up the sides without stretching or tearing the pastry. Trim away any excess pastry that hangs over the edge. The pans should be lined neatly — this forms the crisp shell of each little cake.
7. 7Using a dessertspoon (roughly 10ml), spoon one dessertspoonful of the almond mixture into each lined tart pan. Do not overfill — the mixture will puff up slightly as it bakes. Place the tart pans on a baking tray to make them easier to handle. Slide the tray into the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the pastry is golden and crisp and the almond filling is set and lightly golden on top. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for 5 minutes before carefully lifting the tarts out onto a wire rack to cool completely.