Fresh Milled Flour Jam Bars (Buttery Shortbread)
Buttery, tender jam bars made with freshly milled flour and a soft shortbread-style base. Simple to make and perfect for using your favorite jam or preserves.
Servings 16 bars
Equipment
- Grain mill
- Kitchen scale
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- 8x8 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter cold and cubed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 300 g soft white wheat berries (see more options below)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 3/4 cup jam raspberry, strawberry, mixed berry, or your favorite
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper.
- Weigh out 300 g soft white wheat berries (or another soft wheat of choice) and mill on the finest setting of your grain mill.
- In a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, and almond extract. With the mixer running on low, slowly add the freshly milled flour until the dough starts to come together.
- Press 2/3 of the dough firmly into the bottom of the pan.
- Spread the jam over the base layer.
- Crumble the remaining dough over the top.
- Bake for 30–40 minutes, until lightly golden. (see note below)
- Cool completely before slicing into bars.
Notes
I used soft white wheat for this recipe, but you can also experiment with other soft wheats like einkorn, spelt, or a blend to see what you like best. I often test my recipes using different combinations of these softer wheats, and they always turn out amazing.
If they aren’t starting to brown after 30 minutes, continue baking, this can take closer to 35–40 minutes depending on your oven. Remove once the top is lightly golden.