These homemade Jammie Dodgers are the most deliciously buttery cookies sandwiched together with strawberry jam, with a little heart window cut out of the top cookie. They're a national favourite and are absolutely wonderful for afternoon tea!
Jammie Dodgers are one of the British classics enjoyed at tea time here in the UK (just ask Doctor Who!) They are right up there with Lemon Drizzle Cake. Believe me when I tell you that they're a classic for a reason! The buttery cookies have the best crunchy, crumbly bite and melt in your mouth, which is when you taste the sweet strawberry jam filling. It's hard to eat just one, and they're especially nice with some tea or coffee!
These heart sandwich cookies are a simplified version of the classic Linzer cookies, these delicious shortcake sandwiches use my 3 Ingredient Sugar Cookie recipe, which has an indulgent buttery flavor and tastes wonderful with the fruity jam. These are one of my super quick and easy cookie recipes for guests coming over, along with my Oatmeal Lace Cookies and Scottish Shortbread. And let's face it, homemade Jammie Dodgers are just impressive! They will quickly become a staple recipe in your baking arsenal!
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Why you'll love these Jammie Dodgers
- This is a super easy recipe and only requires 4 simple ingredients
- They are the best buttery 'shortbread-like' cookies that don't spread in the oven - perfect for that little heart cut out!
- You can use your favorite jam from the store or make your own
- The heart-shaped peekaboo window makes them the perfect sweet treat for Valentine's Day or other special occasions - you can make any kind of shape you like.
Ingredients
These homemade jammie dodgers are seriously simple! You'll make a simple shortbread-style butter cookie, then sandwich the pieces together with jam. It's that easy!
- Sugar - Superfine white sugar (caster sugar) is best, but you can use regular granulated sugar if that's what you have on hand.
- Butter - Make sure you use real butter as this will give your cookies that classic snap and melt-in-your-mouth texture. You can use salted or unsalted butter to your preference. Make sure the butter is fully softened before mixing.
- Flour - Use regular all-purpose flour. Wheat flour and self-rising will not work the same, we don't want any raising agents in the flour as it will make the cookies puffy.
- Jam - The classic flavor is strawberry jam. Either make your own jam or make your own strawberry puree at home or use a jar from the store. Make sure you use seedless jam for a super smooth bite. Feel free to try other flavors, too!
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Jammie Dodgers
This recipe for these sweet treats is very simple, we'll make the yummy shortcake biscuits then just sandwich them together with jam.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cream the room-temperature butter and sugar together until they are light and fluffy. I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, but you can just use a large bowl with a wooden spoon.
- Stir in the flour and continue mixing on low speed until the dough begins to clump together into a raggedy dough.
- Pour the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead it until it comes together into a ball. This just takes a few seconds. Be careful not to overwork the biscuit dough!
- Roll the dough into a ¼ inch thick sheet, then use a round cookie cutter to cut out circles. Cut out a small heart-shaped hole from the middle of half of the biscuit rounds to make the window for the upper biscuit. Place the cookies onto the baking tray. I like to use a cookie lifter to move my cookies without ruining the shape.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes to keep them from spreading in the oven.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F / 160°C and then bake for 13-16 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on the cookies. Thinner ones will bake faster and thicker ones will need a little longer. Watch the color - when the edges begin to turn a pale golden brown color, remove them from the oven.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then move them to your wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Spread about a teaspoon of room temperature jam on the bottom cookie, then place the top biscuits on top and press down gently. Feel free to sprinkle them with a little icing sugar if you'd like! Serve with a cup of tea, and enjoy!
Variations
Different types of jam - This Jammie Dodgers recipe will work with any type of jam! They're especially wonderful with cherry or seedless raspberry jam, and the red color really pops with the little heart detail. Homemade strawberry puree also works really nicely for a super smooth filling.
Try other fillings - Nutella and Biscoff taste wonderful in these delicious sandwich biscuits. For a tart, fruity option, try lemon curd instead!
Change the cookie shape - The circles and hearts are iconic, but you can certainly trim the biscuits into other shapes as well. I like to use a large heart-shaped cookie cutter for large, sandwiched Heart Cookies. Great for Valentine's Day or Mother's Day!
Add extracts - These are a great addition that will alter the flavor of the cookies, which can be really fun and delicious! Try a teaspoon of almond or vanilla extract, or get creative with other options.
Make mini Jammie Dodgers - Trim the cookie dough into small, 1.5-inch rounds to make mini cookies to serve on top of these Strawberry Cupcakes as a special treat!
Equipment
- Electric mixer - To properly cream the butter and sugar, it's best to use either an electric mixer or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
- Baking sheet
- Two cookie cutters (circle and heart) - You can use different shapes, but make sure one cutter is quite a bit larger than the other.
- Wire rack
- Cookie Lifter - this makes transferring cookies an absolute breeze - before and after baking!
- Cookie Cutters
Storage
Store any leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Your family biscuit tin is perfect for this!
The unfilled cookies will last for two weeks, but cookies with jam can only stay fresh for 3-5 days before the cookies begin to soften. Cookies filled with Nutella or other shelf-stable fillings will last one week.
FAQ
Traditional Jammie Dodgers are made by placing two matching sugar cookies or shortbread biscuits together with a layer of jam in the middle. You can easily make Jammie Dodgers from scratch at home by baking my 3-ingredient sugar cookies, cutting out the cookies with your favorite cookie cutters, and then piecing them together with your favorite jam. You'll just need 4 simple ingredients and a little time!
That really depends on your preference! Homemade jam or coulis is lovely and has a very bright, fresh flavor, but you can also find fantastic raspberry jam, apple jam, strawberry jam, and more at many grocery stores or markets. Why not try both versions and see which one you like the best?
More Easy Cookie Recipes
I love having a few super quick and easy cookie recipes up my sleeve for when guests are coming over. Here are some of my best simple cookie recipes:
Recipe
Jammie Dodgers
Ingredients
- 227 g (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter 227g
- 100 g (½ cup) Granulated Sugar 100g
- 270 g (2 ¼ cups) All-purpose Flour 270g
- 12 teaspoon Strawberry Jam
Instructions
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.227 g (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter, 100 g (½ cup) Granulated Sugar
- Add the flour and beat until dough-like clumps start to form.270 g (2 ¼ cups) All-purpose Flour
- Tip the mixture out onto a floured work surface and use your hands to gently knead it together into a smooth ball of dough - this shouldn't take long, only 30 seconds or less.
- Use a large rolling pin to roll the dough out to ¼ inch thick, use cookie cutters to cut out circles, and use a small heart cookie cutter to cut out the center of half of the circles. Transfer them to the prepared cookie sheet.
- Chill the cut-out cookies for 30 minutes.
- When the chill time is almost up, preheat the oven to 325°F / 160°C.
- Bake the cookies for 13-16 minutes, bake time will vary according to thickness, so it's best to look for visual cues when they are ready. As soon as the very edge of any of the cookies starts to turn golden brown, remove them from the oven. They should still look very pale in the middle.
- Leave the cookies on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
- Once completely cool, spread about a teaspoon of strawberry jam onto the bottom cookies and gently press the top cookies on top. (It helps if your jam is at room temperature so it will spread more easily).12 teaspoon Strawberry Jam
mervyn
These are so much better than store bought! I don't think I will go back to store bought after trying these.