almond blackberry/strawberry jam bars!

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as promised…here is the recipe for the amazing almond blackberry/strawberry jam bars! i first tasted this treat from my friend alison and i ate 4 (miss you!).  she saw this recipe from the blog 17 and baking. i adapted it a bit to include strawberry jam as well so it included red, white and blue!

this is honestly the very best batter i’ve ever tasted! ever.

i would highly recommend portioning the batter out because you WILL eat too much and sadly it’s not pretty when you consume that much sugar and butter mixture. i learned this the hard way. here’s my portion (and you can lick the mixer).

almond blackberry jam bars wife blogi may or may not have found ‘full house’ on late night TV and it really helped the baking process. i think it was uncle jesse’s hair that really did it. i might recommend watching this as well, but it’s not essential to the taste of the dessert.

IMG_7572after you still eat too much batter,(even though i warned you), you should have some water. and maybe a carrot. now spread that delicious batter on a 10×15-ish rimmed baking sheet and glob on the blackberry and strawberry jam. it may look something like this:

wife blog 4th of july dessert before

 

bake this at 350 degrees for about 19-26 minutes (depending on your oven). caution: the jam will be boiling…do not eat this immediately (ravery learned the hard way).

let the bars cool completely and then drizzle the almond frosting over the carby goodness. if it’s too liquidy-add some more powdered sugar or a little bit of flour to firm it up. i thought of this too late so i got some pooling but it was still delicious! people will like you even more because you bring these to your next BBQ or gathering!

IMG_7600

okay, here’s the recipe:

to make those delicious bars….
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pure almond extract (i found out this burns your tongue if you taste the pure stuff)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup seedless blackberry jam
1/2 cup seedless strawberry jam

for the happy almond drizzle (channeling bob ross)…
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons cream
1 teaspoon pure almond extract (it still burns your tongue if you try it)

preheat the oven to 350 degrees. grease up a half sheet (10″x15″-ish rimmed sheet) with butter or nonstick spray.

mix together that butter and sugar with an electric mixer for a few minutes. add in one egg at a time and incorporate it well before adding the next one.  add vanilla and almond extract. slowly add flour and salt, and mix until just incorporated.

spread the batter into the rimmed cookie sheet. do your best to make it even but don’t freak out if it’s not perfect. after measuring out the jam, stir it well in a bowl to get rid of the clumps. drop jam evenly over the batter. bake for 19-26 minutes depending how finicky your oven is, or until the edges start to turn golden brown.

let the bars cool completely before cutting them into squares. for the drizzle, whisk together the powdered sugar, cream and almond extract and drizzle over your beautiful bars. stick them in the refrigerated for a few minutes to harden to the glaze quickly and then be off to spread the love!

blogs for wives 4th of july texas dessert

3 Comments

  1. Pingback: how to have a texan 4th of july! | the new wifestyle

  2. Alison

    July 5, 2013 at 2:04 pm

    You added strawberry too!?!? That’s GENIUS and sounds like a delicious addition!
    I had fresh berries with vanilla ice cream and shortcake. I need to make these again.
    xoxo, A

    • chelsea

      July 7, 2013 at 4:53 pm

      i know! i’m getting crazy out here. they were pretty delicious (too delicious-i overate everything). that sounds like a scrumptious dessert you made yum on shortcake! i miss youuuuuuuuuuuuu xo