Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13x9 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract. Blend together until fully combined.
Add in flour and mix until butter is incorporated. Mixture will be crumbly. You should be able to pinch the cookie dough and it sticks together.
Pour half the crumbs into the bottom of your baking dish. Press firmly with the palm or your hand or bottom of a measuring cup until firmly pressed into the dish.
Spread raspberry preserves, gently, over the bottom layer of cookie.
Sprinkle remaining crumbs on top of raspberry preserves. Do not press!
Bake for 31-33 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely.
For best results in cutting, refrigerate after cooling for up to an hour. Cut into slices and sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.
Store in air tight container in refrigerator or at room temperature.
Notes
When adding your second layer of crumbs to the cookie bars, do NOT press these crumbs into the bar. ONLY press the first layer of cookie dough into the bottom of the dish. I accidentally pressed the second layer when I made these bars for the first time. While it tasted just fine, they looked super weird. No crumble on top.
Also speaking of crumbs and crumbles…you’re going to think it’s missing liquid. If you’ve ever made shortbread bars you know it’s not a typical cookie dough. It’s more like a bowl of crumbs.
But be sure to test that you have combined your butter into your flour by pressing a fingerful of dough together. It should press together and stick, that’s how you know it’s ready!
Also, when choosing raspberry preserves, try to find the chunkiest brand possible. I loved having those thick chunks in my cookie bars!
Finally, if you want beautiful cut cookie bars, your best results will happen if you refrigerate the bars FIRST. Once they have cooled, cover the bars with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Once chilled, they cut so much easier. You can then top them with powdered sugar!