Apricot and almond fingers

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (fan), or equivalent. Grease and line a 20cm x 20cm square baking tin with parchment paper.

In a food processor, blitz together the flour, salt, sugar and the cubed butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, adding a teaspoon of water if the mixture appears very dry. (Alternatively, to mix by hand, place the above ingredients into a large wide mixing bowl and rub the shortbread ingredients together using your fingertips until they resemble breadcrumbs.)

Press the dough into the lined tin, patting it firmly with your fingers, then use the back of a spoon to give a smooth level surface. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool down slightly in the tin.

Meanwhile, reserve a third of the flaked almonds for the topping. Toast the remaining almonds in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius (fan) for six to eight minutes until golden in colour. Allow the nuts to cool.

Use a knife to spread an even layer of apricot jam over the surface of the pre-baked shortbread (right to the edges). Scatter the toasted flaked almonds over the layer of jam.

For the topping, place the egg white in a medium-size spotlessly clean, grease-free bowl. Using an electric mixer, whisk on high speed until the egg white forms stiff white peaks. Use a metal spoon to gradually add in the caster sugar until fully incorporated and the mixture is glossy and the mixture holds stiff peaks.

Use a spatula to spread an even layer of meringue mixture over the layer of apricot jam and nuts.

Scatter the reserved untoasted flaked almonds over the top of the meringue layer.

Transfer the baking tin to the middle shelf of the preheated oven and bake for approximately 12 minutes until the topping is slightly golden in colour.

Once baked, remove the tray bake from the oven and set aside to cool fully in the tin before portioning into equal sized fingers or squares.

Variation

Chopped toasted hazelnuts can be used in place of almonds.