Easy Traditional Jam Tarts

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 15 mins
Chill: 30 mins
Total: 65 mins
Servings: 6 to 9 servings
Yield: 12 to 18 mini tarts

Jam tarts are a perfect beginner baking recipe since they only require a few ingredients and less than an hour to make. You can substitute ready-made shortcrust pastry dough to save time or follow our recipe below to make pastry crust from scratch. Just fill with a little jam or, for lemon tarts, use lemon curd.

The tiny tarts are a delicious teatime treat and look lovely as part of a daytime party spread. Fill every few with a different kind of jam for lots of color and plenty of flavor options. They're a fun treat to stick in a lunch box, too.

Traditional Jam Tarts
The Spruce

Ingredients

For the Pastry Crust:

  • 8 ounces all-purpose flour

  • 1 pinch salt

  • 4 ounces butter (or an equal mix of butter and lard), cubed

  • 2 to 3 tablespoons water, cold

For the Filling:

Steps to Make It

Make the Pastry Crust

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for making British jam tarts
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  2. Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C Gas Mark 4. Lightly grease a 12-hole tart mold with a little butter.

  3. Mix the flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the cubed butter.

    Flour, salt, and cubed butter in a bowl
     The Spruce
  4. Working as quickly as you can, use a pastry blender or your hands to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

    Butter rubbed into flour until it looks like crumbs
     The Spruce
  5. Add the water to the mixture 1 tablespoon at a time and use a cold knife to stir and bind the pastry together. Stop when the pastry comes together.

    Pastry dough formed into a ball
     The Spruce
  6. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for a minimum of 15 minutes or up to 30 minutes.

    Pastry dough with a dusting of flour
     The Spruce

Assemble the Tarts

  1. Unwrap the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface and roll to a 1/4-inch thickness.

    Rolled out pastry dough with a sprinkle of flour
     The Spruce
  2. Using a tart cutter or cup, cut circles from the pastry just slightly bigger than the holes in the prepared tart mold. Gently press the discs of dough into each mold.

    Making tart crusts from rolled dough
     The Spruce
  3. Place a heaped teaspoon of jam or lemon curd into the pastry-lined tins. Be careful not to overfill as the jam will bubble out when hot and burn.

    Jam tart filling placed in the tart cups
     The Spruce
  4. Repeat until all the pastry is used up—you can squish the pastry trimmings back together and reroll as needed.

  5. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.

    Jam tarts
     The Spruce
  6. Once cooled, serve and enjoy.

Tips

  • The dough can also be made in a food processor by mixing the flour, butter, and salt in the bowl of the processor on a pulse setting. Add water and wrap as above.
  • If you need to make these in a flash, use a store-bought shortcrust pastry dough.
  • We know it's tempting to take a bite right away, but do NOT eat these while hot because you may burn your mouth (the jam stays hot for a long time).
  • Jam tarts can be frozen for up to three months after they've been baked and cooled completely. Store in an airtight container and thaw in the fridge before enjoying.

Why Did My Jam Tarts Shrink?

All pastry shrinks as it cooks since some of the liquid evaporates as it cooks. However, if your tarts are shrinking quite a bit, it may be because you have overworked your shortcrust pastry. Mix or process the dough just enough to bring it together, and don't roll and reroll it too many times.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
231 Calories
10g Fat
31g Carbs
3g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 9
Amount per serving
Calories 231
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10g 13%
Saturated Fat 7g 33%
Cholesterol 27mg 9%
Sodium 102mg 4%
Total Carbohydrate 31g 11%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 9g
Protein 3g
Vitamin C 2mg 8%
Calcium 11mg 1%
Iron 1mg 7%
Potassium 44mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)