Gluten-Free Jam Drops

Soft, buttery jam drops in the Australian style: little vanilla cookie balls pressed with a thumbprint and filled with raspberry or apricot jam. They are simple enough for children to help with and fill a holiday cookie plate in under an hour.

Prep: 20 min Cook: 14 min Total: 50 min Serves: 24

At a glance: This easy baking recipe yields 24 servings in about 50 minutes (20 min prep, 14 min cook). It uses 9 ingredients — including unsalted butter, superfine or granulated sugar, egg — and walks through 7 steps. Updated October 24, 2026. Browse more baking recipes or return to all gluten-free recipes.

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Cross-Contamination Warning for Gluten-Free Jam Drops: When preparing this baking recipe, jam jars that have had a crumby knife in them can carry gluten crumbs, so open a fresh jar. Flour dust travels. Bake this on a day the kitchen is not also handling flour that contains gluten, use clean bowls, beaters and baking sheets, and keep the gluten-free flour blend in its own sealed container.

Gluten-Free Notes for Gluten-Free Jam Drops: These butter cookies use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend and a little xanthan gum instead of flour that contains gluten. Use baking powder, vanilla, jam and a flour blend labeled gluten-free.

Scale Recipe:

servings

Ingredient amounts update automatically

Ingredients

Shop links on this page are for superfine or granulated sugar, pure vanilla extract, gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. Buy the package that says gluten-free. A shared production line is the usual risk with these pantry items. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. Confirm the product is labeled gluten-free before you buy.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup superfine or granulated sugar Shop
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract Shop
1 3/4 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (about 245 g) Shop
1/2 tsp xanthan gum (skip if your blend already contains it) Shop
1 tsp gluten-free baking powder Shop
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup raspberry or apricot jam Shop

Instructions

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment.
2 Beat the butter and sugar until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
3 Add the gluten-free flour blend, xanthan gum (if using), baking powder and salt and mix on low until a soft dough forms.
4 Roll level tablespoons of dough into balls and set them 2 inches apart on the sheets.
5 Press a deep hollow into the center of each ball with your thumb or the end of a wooden spoon dipped in gluten-free flour blend. Smooth any cracks around the edges.
6 Fill each hollow with about 1/2 tsp jam.
7 Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the cookies are pale golden on the bottom edges. The jam will be very hot, so cool them on the sheet for 10 minutes before moving them to a rack.

Tips & Notes

Make the hollows in the jam drops deep, almost to the bottom of the dough ball. Shallow dents flatten as the cookies spread and the jam slides off.
Stir the jam until smooth before filling the jam drops. Lumpy jam bubbles up unevenly, while smooth jam bakes into a glossy center.
Bake one tray at a time in the middle of the oven and pull the jam drops while the tops are still pale. They firm up as they cool and stay soft inside.

Common questions

How long does Gluten-Free Jam Drops take?

Gluten-Free Jam Drops takes about 50 minutes, including resting time: 20 minutes to prep and 14 minutes to cook, for 24 servings.

What should I check before making Gluten-Free Jam Drops with celiac disease?

Written with gluten-free ingredients. Use products labeled gluten-free, check labels, and ask your clinician about your own needs.

What cross-contamination risk is specific to Gluten-Free Jam Drops?

Check unsalted butter, softened, superfine or granulated sugar, egg, at room temperature before they go into Gluten-Free Jam Drops. Jam jars that have had a crumby knife in them can carry gluten crumbs, so open a fresh jar. Flour dust travels. Bake this on a day the kitchen is not also handling flour that contains gluten, use clean bowls, beaters and baking sheets, and keep the gluten-free flour blend in its own sealed container.

Which gluten-free swaps does Gluten-Free Jam Drops use?

Gluten-Free Jam Drops relies on a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend, xanthan gum. Keep those gluten-free-labeled products in place of a gluten-containing flour or sauce. If the blend already lists xanthan gum, do not add a second binder unless this recipe says to.

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Gluten Free Recipes team

Gluten-free recipe development since 2026

Recipes include certified gluten-free ingredient guidance and cross-contamination notes. Check every label and use certified gluten-free products. Learn more about us.

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