Sometimes the simplest things in life are also the tastiest- I had to bake something in a hurry for my friend Kristen's party yesterday, and these delectable little morsels fit the bill perfectly as they called for the exact ingredients I had left in my cupboards and took almost no time to whip up.
Consisting of nothing more than your favourite fruit jam/preserve sandwiched between two layers of sweet buttery pastry, this particular batch proudly employs some homemade grape jam I successfully experimented with a few months back (only because I had a bunch of withering grapes, a ton of sugar and lemon juice to use up). Making the fruit filling from scratch is NOT a requirement for these bars though- feel free to throw on whatever store-bought preserve (or jelly as they call it in the US) you desire.
Assemble the layers, pop into the oven and prepare to be intoxicated as the heady aroma of butter and sugar baking wafts through your living room... :)
Fruit Jam Bars
Makes about 40 bitesize pieces
Cream together with an electric mixer until fluffy:
2 sticks (225g) butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup (200g) caster sugar
Beat in 2 egg yolks, one at a time.
Fold in to form a soft pliable dough:
2 cups (250g) plain flour
1 cup rolled oats (optional- I added this for a bit more fibre and bite)
Line a 9" square pan with greaseproof paper and press 1/2 of the dough evenly to cover the base. Spread 1 cup of fruit jam/ marmalade/ jelly/ preserve of your choice evenly over the top of it. Break the remaining dough into rough pieces and press down in a scattered pattern onto the top of the jam gently. You should cover most of the surface but have little swirls and rivers of jam visible.
Bake at 325° F/160C for 45 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool in the pan, then slice with a sharp knife.
