Raspberry Pistachio Shortbread Bars

Raspberry Pistachio Shortbread Bars:

The light buttery flaky goodness of shortbread cookies mixed with nutty green pistachios and the sweet burst of raspberry jam is a yummy fresh take on a traditional shortbread cookie recipe.  Not only delicious, the red raspberry jam combined with the soft green is a beautiful addition to any Christmas cookie plate.

Holiday Shortbread is a classic gift during the holiday season.  Serve with a warm rich cup of hot cocoa this red, green, buttery delight is sure to bring Christmas cheer and holiday memories to anybody who eats it.   

While I love traditional shortbread, using it as a base for a bar is my favorite. You get all the perks of the rich, sweet, buttery shortbread, but get to infuse some extra fun. In this case you get tart raspberries, and salty, nutty, pistachios, which when combined with the sweet and buttery shortbread is an out of this world dessert that is sure to be a show stopper.

These make great neighbor gifts. Just sayin’!

What are traditional Christmas cookies?

Baked confections are such a staple of the Christmas season.  Puddings, cakes, fudge, and of course cookies are some of the things that make the holidays so sweet. Some of my favorite Holiday cookies are:

• Gingerbread
• Sugar cookies
• Peppermint Chocolate cookies  
• Snickerdoodles  
• Snowball Cookies
• And of course, this Raspberry Pistachio Shortbread recipe.

The idea is that a holiday cookie should taste great and be festive and fun.

Where does shortbread come from?

It doesn’t matter if you’re enjoying fresh out of the oven bars like these or Walkers shortbread bars, we all can say, “Thank you Scotland,” for bringing us these yummy biscuits.

Shortbread started as a medieval shortbread and was a delicacy because of the sugar, hence it was given as a gift.

These days sugar is readily available, but gifting shortbread is still a great gesture of gratitude and love, especially with added goodness of raspberry and pistachio.   

How do you make shortbread?

Shortbread is a bang for your buck type cookie.  Simple, no nonsense cookies, yet oh so good they’re a perfect reflection of the country they come from.  Some details to know about cooking shortbread, and you’ll be on your way to creating a soft, but flaky sweet treat for the holidays or everyday:

• Shortbread is basically three ingredients Flour, Sugar, and butter, with a pinch of salt.
• Cook at a lower temperature to avoid browning. This recipe is cooked at 325℉.
• Wait for it to cool.  It’s more crumbly right out of the oven but firms up    
• Shortbread can be formed in three different ways
  • A large circle cut into wedges
  • Individual circles
  • Or rectangles
• Shortbread is a great base for other desserts, like these bars

With this recipe the pistachios are just a bonus to the deliciousness of shortbread.  The nuts add to the crunch and the jam is a lovely companion to the sweetness of the cookie. This raspberry pistachio shortbread recipe should be a staple in your holiday baking.

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Pistachio Shortbread Bars

The light buttery flaky goodness of shortbread cookies mixed with nutty green pistachios and the sweet burst of raspberry jam is a yummy fresh take on a traditional shortbread cookie recipe.  Not only delicious, the red raspberry jam combined with the soft green is a beautiful addition to any christmas cookie plate.

4 from 22 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pistachio shortbread bars, pistachio shortbread bars recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

cooling time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Servings: 12 bars

Calories: 358kcal

Author: Rachael

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound unsalted butter or margarine softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt omit this if your pistachios are salted
• 1/2-2/3 cup raspberry or strawberry jam
• 2/3 cup pistachios chopped

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325 F.
• Combine butter, sugar and egg; beat until thoroughly mixed.
• Stir in flour and salt.
• Spread one-half of dough into 9 inch square pan.
• Bake 10 minutes; remove from oven.
• Spread jam to within 1/2 inch of edge.
• Add pistachios to remaining dough.
• Drop by spoonfuls over jam to cover.
• Bake 35 minutes until top is golden brown;
• Cool.
• Cut into squares

Nutrition

Calories: 358kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 169mg | Potassium: 112mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 520IU | Vitamin C: 1.7mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 1.4mg

Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.

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