Chocolate Raspberry Shortbread Bars

Last week, when I served my One Bowl Gluten Free Vegan Brownies, Luke said, "Mom, would you PLEASE make something with gluten? Butter? Eggs?!" Not that he doesn't love ALL my treats... In fact, I think he was joking. But, just in case, this one's for you, Luke. Three layers of complete and utter bliss: buttery rich shortbread base, sweet raspberry jam, and melt-in-your mouth, dark chocolate top. There wasn't a need for eggs (sorry Luke, there really wasn't - that's why you got poached eggs on your Orecchiette).

I wish you could have seen Luke's face when he tried one! SCORE ONE FOR MOM! I'm not kidding, these bars literally melt in your mouth. First, it's the buttery shortbread that dissolves, then the jam, then the chocolate. It's a 3-part series of mouth-watering events. Incredibly addictive. Oh, and easy, which is always nice.

As a kid, my mom always made butter cookies (she called them sugar cookies - basically a combo of butter, flour and sugar). At Christmastime, she would sandwich two cookies together with fruit preserves and then dunk half of the cookie in melted dark chocolate. I can actually still taste them - even though I haven't had her cookies in like 30 years. BUT, these bars taste almost EXACTLY like my mom's Christmas version. When I took that first bite, I was catapulted back to my childhood and the excitement of the holidays! So glad Luke gave me the inspiration and wonderful memories.

That said, these bars would make great holiday treats - whether it's for YOUR home or as a scrumptious gift for friends, family, teachers, etc.

Chocolate Raspberry Shortbread Bars

Cooking spray
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), chilled and cut up
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
5-6 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Coat the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray (this holds the parchment paper in place). Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper, allowing the paper to come up the short ends of the pan (this helps remove the shortbread from the pan).
In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Process until blended. Add the butter and process until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Add the vanilla and 5 tablespoons of the milk and pulse on and off until blended; the mixture may look like "sand", but it should come together when you squeeze it in your hand. If the mixture doesn't hold together when you squeeze it, add 1 more tablespoon of milk and pulse until blended.
Pour the "sandy" mixture into the prepared pan and press down to make an even, firmly-packed layer.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the top is light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
Once the shortbread has cooled, spread the jam all over the top, making an even layer.
Melt the chocolate in a bowl over simmering water, or in the microwave (when using the microwave, check and stir the chocolate every 30 seconds to prevent scorching).
Spread the chocolate all over the raspberry filling (it's OK if some of the filling swirls into the chocolate; but using an offset spatula helps spread the chocolate without disturbing the filling)
Cool completely before cutting into 24 bars.

Makes 24 bars