These delightful, traditional biscuits (also known as thumbprint biscuits) are super easy to make and are the perfect-sized treat for any sweet tooth. The addition of custard powder in this recipe gives them a creamy vanilla flavour you’ll adore.
How to make jam drops: key tips
Use electric beaters to cream your butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Remember to use softened butter to make creaming easier.
Once you add the flour and custard powder, stir until the mixture is just combined. You won’t want to overwork the flour or your biscuits will become heavy and dense.
Arrange your balls of dough on the lined baking trays, leaving plenty of room for spreading. The end of a wooden spoon is the perfect utensil to create the indents that will hold the jam. You could also use your thumb (hence, why these biscuits are also known as thumbprint biscuits). How big an indent is up to you. I like my biscuits with a decent amount of jam, so I tend to make my indent a bit bigger than the recipe calls for!
Spoon your jam into the indents, but don’t overfill (see notes below recipe), then bake the biscuits, swapping the trays around in the oven halfway through, until the biscuits are lightly golden. Check them after the 10-minute mark.
Your biscuits will still be soft after baking and the jam will be very hot, so be sure to cool them completely on the trays before devouring!
Key ingredients in this jam drops recipe
This recipe uses a soft, buttery biscuit dough, a bit like shortbread, made with butter, caster sugar, milk, flour and vanilla essence. The cook has also added custard powder, which adds to the soft texture while imparting a creamy vanilla flavour.
The jam is what jam drops are really all about. The cook has used a berry jam, but you could use whatever flavour you desire, or even a combination of different jams.
Love a jam biscuit? So do I! You will also love these shrewsbury biscuits and some fun kiss biscuits topped with hundreds and thousands.
This recipe was originally submitted by fuzzygirl, a member of the Australia’s Best Recipe community. Introduction and additional recipe notes by Natasha Shaw.
Ingredients
- 80g butter
- 1/3 cup caster sugar
- 2 tbs milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
- 1 cup self-raising flour sifted
- 1/3 cup custard powder
- 1 cup berry jam
Method
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Step 1Pre-heat oven to 180C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
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Step 2Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
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Step 3Beat in milk and vanilla.
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Step 4Add flour and custard powder and mix to form a soft dough.
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Step 5Roll approximately 2 teaspoons of mixture into balls and flatten slightly on tray before making an indentation with the rounded end of a wooden spoon.
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Step 6Add jam but do not overfill.
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Step 7Bake at 180C for approximately 15 minutes.
Recipe Notes
How much jam should I add to each biscuit?
About 1/2 to 1 tsp jam should be enough for each biscuit, depending on how big your indent is. It’s important not to overfill the indent or your jam will ooze out over the side.
Can I use any type of jam?
You certainly can! Popular jam options include raspberry, strawberry and apricot. I used to use my Nan’s homemade plum jam for my jam drops.
How do I store these jam drops?
Store your biscuits in a cool, dark place (such as the pantry) in layers between sheets of baking paper in an airtight container. During summer, you may want to keep the container in the fridge so the jam doesn’t become super sticky.
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