The Best Ever Thumbprint Cookies
Nov 29, 2018, Updated Dec 09, 2019
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Thumbprint cookies are a classic holiday favorite. These delicate cookies are baked to perfection and filled with delicious raspberry jam, perfect for the holidays!
It’s time to check out all our cookie recipes! There’s something for everyone, from peanut butter oatmeal raisin cookies to easy molasses cookies and of course, our favorite krumkake recipe! For the classic cookie lovers, we have these delicious thumbprint cookie recipe that’s simple and so easy to make.
These little treats, also known as jam thumbprint cookies are so special because of their look and flavor. They are crumbly and buttery and so delicious! Thumbprint cookies are so easy to make and call for just a handful of ingredients.
Table of Contents
Thumbprint Cookies Ingredients
- Butter: Use unsalted butter and make sure it’s at room temperature. Margarine or other spreads won’t work for this recipe.
- Sugar: Regular granulated sugar would work for this recipe. I don’t recommend using substitutions such as stevia or coconut sugar.
- Egg: Use the yolk in the dough and the white as coating before rolling the cookies dough in shredded coconut.
- Flour: You need regular all purpose flour and for a gluten-free option try 1:1 gluten-free flour.
- Jam: Make sure the jam is not too watery and doesn’t contain too much liquid.
How To Make Thumbprint Cookies
- Turn the oven on and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Beat the butter, sugar and egg yolk in a large bowl. Add in the flour and mix well. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and set them aside.
- Roll each dough ball in lightly beaten egg white and then in the coconut flakes.
- Make a small indentation into the center of each cookie ball.
- Fill the indentation with jam and bake until golden on the edges.
How Prevent Thumbprint Cookies From Spreading
This is a very common issue when making thumbprint cookies and it’s because the butter and sugar melt into the cookies which causes them to spread a bit. To minimize the spread, there are a few steps you can take:
- Refrigerate the cookie dough balls: Once you have the cookies rolled and filled with jam, before placing them in the oven, refrigerate them for about 30 minutes to an hour. This step must be taken after rolling the cookies and before baking them. Don’t refrigerate the cookie dough that hasn’t been shaped into balls, it will get hard and rolling will be a pain.
- Indentation: When making the indentation, make sure it’s mostly narrow and deep instead of being wide. You can use the tip of your finger to do so.
- Use a cool baking sheet: This works for all types of cookies, make sure the cookie sheet is at room temperature before placing the cookies on it. If the cookie sheet is warm or hot, cookies will start spreading right away before baking. Read about best cookie sheets on Food and Wine.
Variations
Thumbprint cookies are so versatile and can be filled with different types of jam such as strawberry, raspberry, blackberry or apricot as long as they don’t container much liquid. Other filling options are ganache, caramel, lemon curd or peanut butter and jelly.
Storage
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. You can refrigerate these for up to 10 days.
Can you freeze thumbprint cookies? Thumbprint cookies freeze very well. Once you’ve made all the cookies and they’re all filled with jam and they’ve cooled completely, you can freeze them.
Place several cookies on a baking sheet, top with parchment paper and then place another row of cookies on them. Freeze until fully frozen and then place them in a ziploc bag and freeze. To defrost, take the cookies out of ziploc bag and place them on a baking sheet in room temperature.
Frequently Asked Questions
These thumbprint cookies don’t need a lot of time to bake. Each batch of cookies needs to be baked for about 9-10 minutes until the edges are golden. The cookies might still be soft once they’re out of the oven so let them cool a bit before transferring to a cooling rack.
Yes, simply rolls the cookies in the egg white and then granulated sugar.
Cracking is so common with thumbprint cookies and it’s not even a big deal to have some cracks on the cookies. However, if you want to have smooth and round thumbprint cookies, it’s possible.
This cookie dough is firm yet soft since there’s no chilling time, roll the cookie dough between your hands until it has a smooth surface with no cracks. After pressing an indent into the cookie dough ball, if there’s a crack, simply press it back together.
Yes. They actually freeze really well. Once you’ve made all the cookies and they’re all filled with jam and they’ve cooled completely, you can freeze them.
Place several cookies on a baking sheet, top with parchment paper and then place another row of cookies on them. Freeze until fully frozen and then place them in a ziploc bag and freeze. To defrost, take the cookies out of ziploc bag and place them on a baking sheet in room temperature.
Yes, you can make the dough up to a week ahead of time and once you’re ready to bake, take the dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature before rolling it.
If you’d like to prepare the dough more than 7 days in advance, wrap it in a plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough in the fridge overnight and bake as instructed.
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Best Ever Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 stick Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Egg yolk
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 3/4 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 Egg white, lightly beaten (optional)
- 1 cup Coconut Flakes, (optional)
- 1 cup Raspberry Jam
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Beat butter and granulated sugar until fully creamy and incorporated.
- Add in the egg yolk and vanila extract and mix well.
- Add in flour and mix using a wooden spoon or spatula until a dough forms. Cover and refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes up to 2 days.
- When ready to bake, roll a 1-inch ball of dough and set it aside. Repeat with the remaining dough until you have 36 dough balls.
- Roll each ball in the beaten egg and then in the coconut flakes (optional step).
- Place the balls on the baking sheet, leaving a 2-inch space between them.
- Using your thumb, press an indentation into the center of each cookie. Fill the indentation with raspberry jam.
- Bake the cookies in the oven for 9-10 minutes until the bottom of the cookies is golden.
- Cool the cookies on a rack and then serve.
Notes
- Rolling the cookie dough balls in beaten egg and coconut flake is an optional step. You can simply roll the dough balls in granulated sugar and place them on the baking sheet.
- you can make the dough up to a week ahead of time and once you’re ready to bake, take the dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature before rolling it.
If you’d like to prepare the dough more than 7 days in advance, wrap it in a plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough in the fridge overnight and bake as instructed. - Storage: Simply place them in an airtight container and store at room temperature for up to four days.
- Freezing baked cookies: Place the cookies on a baking sheet in one single layer and freeze for about one to two hours until they’re fully frozen. Place them in a ziploc bag and freeze for up to 6 months. To defrost, take them out of the bag and place them on a baking sheet. Let them thaw in the fridge or at room temperature.
- To prevent the cookies from spreading: Chill the cookie balls with jam in the fridge for 30 minutes to one hour before baking, this will help the cookies not to spread too much.
- To prevent cracks on the edges of the cookies: Roll the cookie dough balls between your hands long enough to make sure they don’t have any cracks or lines. Make the indentation rather narrow than wide.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Excellent! Thanks for the recipe!
So delicious! Such a great recipe to have on hand for the holidays
My son adores coconut and I love thumbprint cookies, so we opted to make these over the weekend. They were amazing! New Christmas cookie recipe for us!
Can these be made with whole wheat flour? or almond flour, instead of all-purpose?
I don’t recommend using other kinds of flour as they would change the texture, the consistency and the time for baking.
I’m new to making thumbprint cookies and these were SO good! Such an easy recipe to follow.
Hi, I have a question. How far in advance can you make the cookies and leave in the refrigerator?
Hi Laura, these cookies stay well for about 4 days if kept in an airtight container. Hope you enjoy them!
Thumbprint cookies are such a classic for the holidays! Love the coconut in this recipe! So tasty and easy to bake up! Everyone is going to love them!
We make thumbprints every year! They are one of our holiday favorites!
Thumbprint cookies are perfect for the holidays!
Coconut Cookies are a favorite of mine! This recipe looks amazing!
Thank you Nellie!
These cookies look delicious!
Thank you Natalie! They were a hit during the holidays!