Coconut and Cherry Jam Bars

STEP 1: MAKE AND BLIND-BAKE THE ALMOND SHORTBREAD

Heat the oven to 350F (175C) and line the pan with parchment, leaving an overhang on the long sides. Beat the butter, sugar and salt until pale and light, about 3 minutes, then beat in the almond extract. Add the all-purpose flour and almond flour and mix on low only until the dough comes together in clumps; over-mixing here is what turns a short crumb tough. Press the dough evenly into the pan, working it into the corners, level it with the base of a measuring cup and dock it all over with a fork. Chill 20 minutes, then bake 22-25 minutes until evenly pale gold and firm at the edges. Cool completely in the pan before anything wet touches it - the docking and the full cooling are what protect the crunch under a wetter layer.

STEP 2: COOK THE CHERRY JAM DOWN HARD

Combine the sour cherries, sugar, lemon juice and salt in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer 25-30 minutes, crushing the fruit against the side of the pan as it softens, until the mixture mounds on a spoon and a channel drawn through it holds for a full three seconds. This is roughly twice as far as you would take a jam for toast, and that is the point: water dilutes cherry flavour and it stops the layer above from setting. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the kirsch and cool completely. You should have about 1 1/2 cups (420 g) of very thick, dark jam.

STEP 3: POWDER THE CHERRY AND SPREAD

Grind the freeze-dried sour cherries to a fine powder. Stir two thirds of the powder into the cooled jam; it will thicken further and the colour will deepen. Spread the jam over the cooled shortbread in an even layer right to the edges, then dust the remaining powder directly over the jam. That last dusting sits at the interface between jam and coconut and is the single most effective thing in this recipe for making cherry read against coconut, because it arrives as dry concentrate rather than as more wet fruit.

STEP 4: MIX THE COCONUT LAYER TO A MEASURED RATIO

Whisk the egg whites just to break them up - do not whip them to a foam. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, coconut cream, salt and vanilla extract, then fold in the shredded coconut until every strand is coated. The mixture should be thick, sticky and cohesive: a spoonful lifted out should hold its shape rather than slump. If it slumps, add coconut, never more binder. Three egg whites to 340 g of coconut is the correction; a conventional macaroon layer uses one or two and sets softly.

STEP 5: BAKE THE COCONUT LAYER TO A SET CENTRE

Spoon the coconut mixture over the jam and press it down firmly and evenly with an offset spatula or damp fingertips. Firm compaction matters as much as the formula: an airy coconut layer collapses under a bite no matter how well bound it is. Bake at 350F (175C) for 25-30 minutes until the top is deep golden and toasted at the tips and the centre no longer wobbles when the pan is nudged. Press the centre gently with a fingertip; it should feel firm and spring back rather than yield. This second bake both sets the layer and toasts the coconut, so the flavour comes out stronger, not weaker.

STEP 6: CHILL HARD BEFORE CUTTING

Cool the slab completely in the pan, then refrigerate at least 3 hours, or overnight. Do not skip this and do not shorten it. The coconut layer continues to firm as it cools and the jam sets against the shortbread; a warm slab will cut raggedly and squash under the knife.

STEP 7: TEMPER THE CHOCOLATE

Melt three quarters of the dark chocolate over a bain-marie, or in short bursts in the microwave, to 115-120F (46-49C). Take it off the heat, add the reserved quarter as seed and stir steadily until it drops to 82-84F (28-29C). Warm it gently back to 88-90F (31-32C) for working. Test on a knife tip: it should set matte-glossy and firm within 3 minutes at room temperature.

STEP 8: COAT, SET AND CUT

Pour the tempered chocolate over the chilled slab while it is still in the pan and spread it quickly and thinly with an offset spatula. Scatter the freeze-dried cherry pieces and the flaky sea salt, if using, while it is still wet. Let it set at cool room temperature, not in the refrigerator, which will bloom it and undo the temper. Lift the slab out by the parchment overhang. Cut with a long thin blade warmed in hot water and wiped dry between every single cut, scoring the chocolate first with light pressure and then pressing through in one clean stroke. Trim the outer edges before portioning into 24 bars.