Guava Jam Bars (Printable)

Buttery cookie bars with sweet guava jam and golden streusel topping—a tropical twist on a classic treat.

# What You'll Need:

→ Cookie Base and Streusel

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 cup granulated sugar
03 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
04 - 1/4 teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
06 - 1 large egg
07 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ Filling

08 - 1 cup guava jam or paste, softened

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8x8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang for easy removal.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until evenly distributed.
03 - Add cold cubed butter to the dry mixture. Using a pastry cutter or fingertips, blend until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
04 - Add the egg and vanilla extract. Mix until combined and a crumbly dough forms.
05 - Press approximately two-thirds of the dough evenly into the prepared pan to create the base layer.
06 - Gently spread the guava jam over the base layer, leaving a small border around the edges.
07 - Crumble the remaining dough evenly over the jam layer to form a streusel topping.
08 - Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is lightly golden brown.
09 - Cool completely in the pan before lifting out and cutting into 16 bars.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • They're ridiculously easy to throw together, no fancy equipment or skills required—just your hands and a bowl.
  • That tropical guava flavor is unexpected enough to make people ask what's in them, but familiar enough that everyone comes back for seconds.
  • The texture contrast between the crumbly streusel and creamy jam center feels way more impressive than the minimal effort involved.
02 -
  • The butter must be cold or you'll end up with dense, greasy bars instead of that crumbly texture that makes these special; I learned this the hard way when I tried to speed things up by softening it.
  • Guava jam spreads easier if you let it sit at room temperature for five minutes first, and a thin offset spatula or butter knife makes the spreading so much cleaner than trying to do it with a spoon.
03 -
  • Use an 8x8-inch pan exactly as written; jumping to a 9x9 will make them thinner and cakey, while anything smaller makes them too thick and dense.
  • If your jam is thick and hard to spread, microwave it for 15 seconds at a time until it softens, but don't overheat it or it'll seep into the base layer.
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