The Best Jam Shortbread Bars

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The Best Jam Shortbread Bars are made with butter, brown sugar, flour and your favorite jam. These layered bars are easy to make and are so perfect for a quick and easy dessert to share with family and friends.

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Jam Shortbread Bars are made by creaming together butter, light brown sugar and vanilla extract and then slowly adding flour to create a crumble texture. This dough will be the base and the topping of this bar and your favorite jam as the filling. I love playing around with different flavor jams and keeping them festive for the season.

Dessert Bars are really great to serve a crowd and easy to whip up for a last minute treat. I love the ease of pressing the batter into a pan, baking and cutting. If you love these Easy Jam Shortbread Bars, you are sure to love our Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars or our famous Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Blondies.

Ingredients

layer of shortbread dough layered with jam and cut into small squares

Butter-Unsalted butter at room temperature will make these bars tender and have the perfect crumble.
Sugar-I love the addition of light brown sugar in these dessert bars. The molasses that is naturally in brown sugar adds an extra boost of flavor and keeps them super moist.
Flour-No need for fancy flour, all purpose flour will work great in this recipe and create the perfect texture.
Jam- There is no right answer here! You choose your favorite Jam for these Jam Shortbread Bars. I love to switch the jam flavors out seasonally but I always love a classic raspberry jam, strawberry or apricot.

Step-by-Step Instructions

six squares showing the process of how to make jam shortbread bars

In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, cream together the butter, light brown sugar and vanilla extract until fully combined
On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt to the butter mixture until it becomes a crumbly texture
Add ¾ of the shortbread dough to the prepared pan and press down to create a flat and even surface
Spread the jam on top of the shortbread base and then add the remaining crumble to the top of the jam
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the shortbread turns a light golden color
Remove the Jam Shortbread Bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely before removing them from the pan (refrigerate if you are in a rush)
Once the bars are cool, remove them from the pan and cut them into the desired shape and size

Tips and FAQS To Make The Best Dessert Bars

Sugar
Using light brown sugar in this recipe really keeps the dough very tender and soft because of the molasses in the brown sugar!

Dough Texture
The dough will be very crumbly and will not fully come together. This is CORRECT! Once you press the dough into the pan it will come together for the base and will still create the perfect crumb topping

How To Store The Bars
These bars can be enjoyed the day you make them, can be store in an airtight container for 5-6 day or can be frozen for up to three months.

Can I Choose Any Jam?

The flavor of the jam does not matter, just be sure that is a nice and thick consistency and not to watery of a jam.

What is the difference between Jam and Jelly?

Both jam and jelly is made with fruit, the main difference is that a jelly is typically made with a fruit juice and a jam is made with whole fruit and the juice and then mashed.

a jar of jammit jam next to a cake stand with a stack of jam shortbread bars

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