This is often said to be the oldest cake in the world and dates back to at least 1653, but no one knows who invented it. There are lots of variations and the oldest known recipe is in a cookbook that was written 350 years ago. Named after the Austrian city of Linz, which is justly proud of this delicious creation, the linzer torte has a crumbly pastry base, a jam filling and a lattice top. This is our version – it’s a sort of posh jam tart really.
Put the sugar, flour, almonds and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl and stir until well combined.
Add the cubes of butter and rub them into the flour mixture with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. It should feel quite moist.
Add the egg and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together, then knead lightly into a ball. Weigh the dough and take a quarter away to use for the lattice topping. Roll the rest into a ball and turn it out on to a well-floured surface.
Flatten the ball with your hands, or a floured rolling pin, until it is about 2.5cm/1 in thick. Place the dough in the centre of a 24cm/9½ in loose-based, fluted tart tin and press it with your fingers over the base until it is about halfway up the sides of the tin and the tin is evenly covered.
Spread the jam over the dough as evenly as possible.
Shape the reserved dough into a fat sausage and roll it out on a well-floured surface to make a rectangle 3mm/⅛in thick – about the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut the dough into 1.5cm/⅝in strips. Place the strips over the jam, first in one direction and then the other, to create a criss-cross pattern over the filling. Press the edges to seal, pinch off the excess pastry and smooth the joins down with your fingertips. Chill the tart in the fridge for 30–60 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375F/Gas 5. Put the tart on a baking sheet and bake in the centre of the oven for about 30 minutes or until the almond pastry is pale golden brown. Cool in the tin for 5–10 minutes, then slide it on to a serving platter or board.
Decorate with a light dusting of icing sugar, if you like, and cut it into wedges to serve.
