Bear Hug Jam Tarts

These Bear Hug Jam Tarts are as adorable as they are delicious – perfect for Valentine’s Day or any sweet occasion. Buttery, crumbly pastry encases gooey fruity jam, all topped with white chocolate Milkybar buttons shaped into the cutest little bear faces. And the best part? They’re incredibly easy to make and you only need five ingredients! These little jam tarts are like a warm nostalgic hug and are almost too cute to eat… almost!

This recipe is created in partnership with Milkybar. I only recommend products that I personally love, use and trust!

Your 5-ingredient list:

• Shortcrust pastry – Provides a buttery pastry case base for the jam tarts. I used a sheet of ready-rolled shortcrust pastry to make this recipe quick and easy, But feel free to make your own if your prefer.
• Jam – Any flavour you like; raspberry, strawberry, cherry. Just make sure it’s seedless and good-quality.
• Milkybar buttons – You’ll need two kinds of Milkybar buttons to make these Bear Hug Jam Tarts. One 85g bag of Sharing Milkybar Buttons (these are bigger and will be used for the face), and two 30g bags of the treat-sized Milkybar Buttons (these are smaller and will be used for the bear’s ears and nose).
• Black writing icing – We’ll use this to draw on the cute bear faces and bring them to life.
• Heart sprinkles – Added to the ears for a touch of Valentine’s cuteness and pop of colour.

Prepare the Pastry Cases

We start by preparing the pastry cases. I opted for a sheet of ready-rolled shortcrust pastry to make this recipe quick and easy. However, you can make your own if you’d prefer, and this recipe is very good. If you’re using ready-made shortcrust, remember to take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes beforehand to prevent any cracks.

Unwrap the pastry, grab a round fluted cutter (6cm is perfect), and cut out 12 circles. Press the pastry discs into a nonstick shallow bun tin. It helps to use a small jar to press them down. Then, place the tin in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill the pastry.

Fill & Bake the Jam Tarts

Take the pastry cases out of the fridge and add the jam. It can be tempting to spoon lots of jam into each case, but during baking, the jam will spread out and bubble up. So, it’s best to fill them halfway with only one heaped teaspoon. You can see the before and after in the photographs below.

Pop the jam tarts into the oven on the middle shelf at 180°C (fan) for 20 minutes. If your oven is anything like mine and tends to be hotter at the back, rotate the tin halfway through the baking time for an even bake.

Turn the Jam Tarts into Cute Bears

Once the jam tarts are cool, it’s time to add the cute Milkybar bear decorations! There are three steps to this:

1. Assemble the buttons: Arrange two small Milkybar buttons on top of the jam for the bear’s ears. Overlap a big button on top for the bear face. Use a dab of icing to stick a small button on top of the bear’s nose.
2. Bring the bear faces to life: Use black writing icing to draw on the bear faces. Two eyes, a cute upside-down triangle for the nose, and a happy smiley face.
3. Valentine’s touches: Use the icing to stick two mini heart sprinkles to the ears for a cute finish and pop of colour.

Bear Hug Jam Tarts

These Bear Hug Jam Tarts are as adorable as they are delicious – perfect for Valentine’s Day or any sweet occasion. Buttery, crumbly pastry encases gooey fruity jam, all topped with white chocolate Milkybar buttons shaped into the cutest little bear faces. And the best part? They’re incredibly easy to make and you only need five ingredients! These little jam tarts are like a warm nostalgic hug and are almost too cute to eat… almost!

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Prep: 10 minutes minutes

Cook: 20 minutes minutes

Chill time: 30 minutes minutes

Total: 1 hour hour

Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 320 grams Shortcrust pastry feel free to make your own or use ready-rolled shortcrust pastry (e.g. Jus-rol)
• 150 grams Raspberry jam you will need 12 teaspoons
• 1 85g Milkybar Sharing Bag you will need 12 big buttons
• 2 30g Milkybar Treat-sized Bags you will need 36 small buttons
• Black writing icing
• Heart sprinkles

Instructions

• Unroll the pastry and use a 6cm fluted round cutter to cut out 12 circles.
  320 grams Shortcrust pastry
• Press the pastry circles into the holes of a non-stick bun tin (I used a small jar to press down the middle). Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes (this will stop them from shrinking too much).
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (fan) / 200°C (conventional).
• Take the pastry cases out of the fridge and fill each one with a teaspoon of raspberry jam.
  150 grams Raspberry jam
• Bake for 20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and the jam bubbling. Leave to cool in the tin, then use a knife to carefully pop them out.
• Once completely cool, arrange two small buttons on top of the jam for the bear’s ears. Place a big button on top overlapping the ears for the bear's face. And a small button on top for the bear's nose.
  1 85g Milkybar Sharing Bag, 2 30g Milkybar Treat-sized Bags
• Use the black writing icing to draw on the eyes, nose and a cute smiley mouth.
  Black writing icing
• Use a little dab of icing to stick the heart sprinkles on top of the ears. Enjoy your adorable Bear Hug Jam Tarts!
  Heart sprinkles

Video

Notes

Store your Bear Hug Jam Tarts in a baking tin at room temp for up to 5 days.