Cherry and almond shortbread

1.Preheat the oven to 160°C and line a baking sheet with baking paper or butter it lightly.

2.Put the flours, caster sugar and a pinch of salt into the food processor and pulse to combine. Drop in the butter a little at a time and process until mixture begins to clump together.

3.Add the egg yolk and essence and process again until large clumps form. Turn the mixture out onto a floured board and push together with your fingers to form a smooth ball of dough. Cut in half.

4.Add the cherries to one half and knead again until they are well incorporated. Now roll out the cherry dough to a 20cm square and set aside. (I use a ruler held on its side to push the shortbread into a neat square.) Roll out the other piece of dough to the same size.

5.Whisk the egg white with a fork until it is liquid and brush a little over the cherry layer. Put the plain layer on top and press down gently with your hands and the rolling pin. The shortbread should now be about 1cm thick.

6.Brush the top with more egg white and sprinkle over the flaked almonds. Using a long-bladed knife, cut the dough into 4 strips, then cut each strip into 8 fingers. Press down any pieces of almond that have been dislodged in the cutting process and try to ensure that each piece of shortbread has a few good pieces of almond. Sprinkle with the extra caster sugar and transfer the pieces to the prepared tray.

7.Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the tray after 15 minutes. The shortbread should be a pale golden colour, not brown. Cool on a rack and store in airtight tins with waxed paper between the layers of shortbread, or freeze in containers.