Costa Bakewell Tart Recipe
A buttery almond tart with raspberry jam and sweet icing — a Costa Coffee favourite you can easily recreate at home.
Contains Allergens
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Why you'll love it
If you’ve ever grabbed a sweet treat with your flat white at Costa, chances are you’ve tried their famous Bakewell tart — buttery pastry, tangy raspberry jam, soft almond sponge, and a neat drizzle of white icing. It’s simple, nostalgic, and irresistibly moreish. This Costa-style Bakewell is a true British café classic, designed to be baked in a home kitchen without fuss. The balance of textures is what makes it shine — crisp pastry beneath a fluffy almond layer, finished with that distinctive glossy icing swirl. Perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up, coffee mornings, or lunchbox bakes, this recipe captures the same indulgent texture and flavour you know from Costa Coffee counters.
About the original
Costa Coffee’s Bakewell tart has become one of the chain’s staple traybakes, loved for its balance of buttery richness and comforting almond sweetness. Unlike traditional Bakewell tarts served warm with custard, Costa’s version is designed for café display — more compact, with a slightly denser almond sponge and a bright raspberry jam layer that holds its colour beautifully.
The icing is simple but signature: smooth white fondant with a single pink swirl. That swirl is more than decoration — it’s a nod to the original Bakewell tradition from Derbyshire, modernised for Costa’s coffee shop aesthetic.
Recreating it at home means you can enjoy that coffee-shop indulgence fresh from your own oven — crisp pastry shell, sweet almond filling, and that nostalgic Bakewell aroma wafting through the kitchen.
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Ingredients
For the pastry base
- 200 g Plain flour
- 100 g Unsalted butter — Cubed
- 50 g White Sugar — Use Icing Sugar
- 1 piece Egg yolks
- 2 tbsp Water — Cold water
For the filling
- 100 g Raspberry Jam
- 100 g Unsalted butter
- 100 g Caster sugar
- 2 piece Egg
- 100 g Almonds — Ground
- 25 g Self-raising flour
- ½ tsp Almond Extract
For the topping
- 150 g White Sugar — Use Icing sugar
- 2-3 tbsp Water
- 2 ml Pink Food Colouring — 1 or 2 drops only
Method
Make the pastry:
Rub together flour, butter, and icing sugar until crumbly. Stir in the egg yolk and enough cold water to form a soft dough. Wrap and chill for 20 minutes.
Prepare the base:
Roll out the pastry on a floured surface to fit a 20cm loose-bottom tart tin. Line the tin, trim edges, prick the base with a fork, and chill again for 15 minutes.
Blind bake:
Heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Line pastry with baking paper and fill with baking beans. Bake for 15 minutes, remove paper and beans, and bake for a further 5 minutes until pale golden. Cool slightly.
Make the frangipane filling:
Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then fold in ground almonds, flour, and almond extract.
Assemble the tart:
Spread raspberry jam evenly over the pastry base. Spoon the almond mixture on top and smooth the surface.
Bake:
Bake for 25–30 minutes until golden and set in the centre. Allow to cool completely in the tin.
Add icing:
Mix icing sugar with enough water to form a thick but spreadable glaze. Spread evenly over the cooled tart. For the Costa swirl, add a few drops of pink icing and drag a skewer or knife through to create the pattern.
Slice and serve:
Once the icing has set, cut into neat squares or slices. Perfect with a coffee, just like Costa’s original.
Tips & Variations
- Swap raspberry jam for cherry or apricot for flavour twists.
- Add a few chopped glacé cherries to the sponge for extra nostalgia.
- For a gluten-free version, use ground almonds and gluten-free flour blend in both base and filling.
- Double the recipe for a traybake version like Costa’s large counter portions.
- Chill the tart before icing for a smooth, glossy finish.
- Drizzle melted white chocolate instead of icing for a café-style twist.
FAQs
- Can I use ready-rolled shortcrust pastry?
- Yes — it’s a great time-saver and still gives a crisp result.
- Why did my frangipane sink in the middle?
- It was slightly overmixed or underbaked. Beat just until combined and bake until golden.
- How long does Bakewell tart keep?
- Up to 4 days in an airtight tin at room temperature.
- Can I freeze it?
- Yes — freeze un-iced portions for up to 2 months, then thaw and glaze fresh.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Calories | 385 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 5 g |
| Fat | 21 g |
| Carbs | 42 g |
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