Description
These Raspberry Almond Shortbread Bars are a delightful combination of buttery shortbread, sweet raspberry jam, and crunchy almonds. Perfect for any occasion, these bars are a crowd-pleaser and easy to make!
Ingredients
Scale
Shortbread Crust:
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened; 2 sticks / 226 g)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar (150 g; use 1/2 cup for a less sweet crust if desired)
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (reduce to a pinch if using salted butter)
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (270 g, spooned and leveled; do not pack)
- 1/4 cup finely ground almonds or almond flour (about 25 g; optional but recommended)
Raspberry Layer:
- 3/4–1 cup raspberry jam or preserves (240–300 g; seedless or seeded, good-quality and fairly thick)
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest (optional, stirred into the jam)
Topping:
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds (40 g; for topping)
- nonstick baking spray (for greasing the pan, optional if using parchment)
- parchment paper (to line the pan with overhang for easy removal)
Instructions
- Prepare pan and oven: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a 9×13-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Cream butter and sugar: Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and extracts: Mix in the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract until smooth.
- Add dry ingredients and form dough: Combine dry ingredients with wet ingredients to form a dough.
- Press dough into pan: Press 2/3 of the dough into the pan to form the crust.
- Par-bake the crust: Bake the crust until lightly golden.
- Prepare raspberry layer: Stir the raspberry jam and lemon zest together.
- Spread jam over crust: Spread the jam over the baked crust.
- Add crumb topping: Scatter remaining dough over the jam layer for a crumbly topping.
- Add sliced almonds: Sprinkle sliced almonds over the crumb topping.
- Bake until golden: Bake until the top is golden and jam is bubbly.
- Cool completely and cut: Cool the bars, then cut into squares.
Notes
- You can customize these bars with different jams or nuts for variety.
- Ensure the jam layer is spread evenly for consistent flavor in each bite.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 75mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 25g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 35mg