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This thumbprint cookie recipe is probably one of the easiest cookies I’ve ever made. Throw all the ingredients together (all FIVE of them) and mix it all up. Refrigerate for an hour, roll them into balls, poke, bake, fill, bake. Done. Eat.
When I was young, just married and before kids, I knew how to make a few things. Spaghetti, hamburgers, baked chicken and of course, chocolate chip cookies (as long as I had the instructions on the chocolate chip bag). That was about it. I relied very heavily on a cookbook my dad gave to me when I moved away from home for the first time. The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook
I set the cookbook on the stovetop to answer the phone and promptly forgot about it. That wouldn’t have been a big deal except that I had an electric stove in that little apartment and I had just turned the burner off a few minutes before. Well, if you’ve ever used an electric stovetop you know that the burners take a while to cool down. Needless to say, my cookbook suffered severe burns and I was devastated. My dad heard about it and bought me the same book, a new copy, for my birthday. What a guy :) I still have that book. I still love that book. And that dad. ;)
Well inside the pages of that lovingly tattered cookbook is a recipe for Spritz cookies. Then below that are instructions for using that same recipe to make raspberry thumbprints. I’ve been making these thumbprint cookies, same recipe, no changes except the fillings, every Christmas for 24 years.
I’m sure I could have altered the recipe, added vanilla or almond extract, experimented with spice additions, maybe nuts or almond flour… but why? They are wonderful just how they are. I wouldn’t change a thing. They are firm but soft and totally delicious. I’ve made them with margarine (I used to use it a lot when I was younger) and with butter and they come out great either way. I hope you’ll try them, and maybe even adapt them to fit your tastes. Or maybe you’ll make them as is and love them as much as I do. Either way, I’m happy to be able to share one of my Christmas traditions with all of you. :)
I do have a few tips for this recipe. The recipe itself is rather short, but a bit longer with my added notes. My notes are in red.
Oh, and if you are wondering about the cookies with the red centers, those are maraschino cherries. Didn’t give me the “umph” I thought they would, but they certainly didn’t get thrown away. :)
Thumbprint Cookies
The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook
3 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cups unsalted butter, softened (not melted)
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
1 egg yolk
Preserves, flavors of your choice
Combine all ingredients and mix together until combined. I’m so used to creaming butter and sugar and following those steps, that putting everything together is weird to me now. So, I cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg, then slowly add the orange juice. Then I slowly add in the flour until combined. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.
Preheat oven to 375 F.
Use a cookie scoop to ensure uniform sizing.
Roll balls in your hands to smooth, place on cookie sheet.
Use your thumb or pointing finger to gently press the center of the cookie, forming an indent.
Since pressing the cookie will cause it to lean to one side, after creating all the indents, I turn the cookie sheet around and repress each indent from the other side. This makes then stand back upright. Bake for ten minutes.
Remove from oven, fill indents with preserves, lemon or lime curd, marmalade, or even apple butter.
Return to oven and bake 5-6 minutes more, do not let them get brown. Cool on racks. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
If you followed my indenting tip above, you should have very little spillage… like this.
(If you enjoyed this post, I’d truly appreciate a stumble, Digg, facebook share, whatever you like! :) )
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Beautiful thumbprint cookies, Amanda. Those are one cookie I've never made, but I'm about to fix that!
I'm a new follower and these look great! Thanks for all the recipes. :)
Those cookies look incredible! I've never ever heard of using orange juice in thumbprint cookies. I can't wait to try this!
Your cookies are beautiful, and so perfectly round and uniform, Amanda! So nice to have all the different fillings. The top photo is my favorite!
They look delicious Amanda and are one of my favorites!!!
Of all the cookies I've made year after year, I've yet to do thumbprints…until now. Just one question…how long do these keep, or can they be frozen? I want to fit them into my baking schedule for cookie trays!
Thanks ladies!
Jenn – you can freeze the dough without a problem. I have never frozen the finished cookies, however I'm sure they would be fine. I would suggest freezing just the dough, maybe already separated into balls, just to be safe! :)
I am book marking to make them I really need easy not as good a baker as you lol
lovely post Amanda wow 24 years
It just wouldn't be Christmas without some thumbprint cookies! Yours look fabulous Amanda! xxoo
Yum Yum — Those are so pretty and are a wonderful Christmas cookie. Thanks for sharing your step by step process.
Would it be okay to use lemon juice instead of orange juice? We're not orange people in my house
Niki – I would imagine you could try it, or even use milk. There really isn't an orange flavor to the cookies at all :)
I made similar cookies! Love them!
this is classic beauties, I love baking thumb prints cookies. yours are perfect1
Yum Amanda! Awesome photos….and the cherry one? Maybe a little melty chocolate first, then plop the cherry in? Yummy ;)
Great cookies. Great post.
Love the idea of indenting both side to make it even. Can you tell I've had dam issues in the past? ;)
Love the idea of the chocolate with the cherries, hmmm… Nutella?! :)
I was mostly thinking that we don't keep it in the house… I was being flaky there, milk would be perfect! I am not thinking sometimes! :)
These look so yummy.
My husband's been wanting me to make some of these cookies so I bookmarked this page. It looks easy, and since I generally suck at making cookies, I'm hoping I'll have some cookie success for a change. :) Wish me luck! :) Cheers! sheila
Thumbprint cookies are some of my all time favorites, yours came out beautiful!
Your thumbprints look wonderful! I love that you used all the different flavors!
I'm hosting a Christmas Recipe party on Thursday (with prizes). Hope you can stop by!
Ahh gorgeous thumprints!! Did you simply spoon the fillings in? I tend to create a huge mess while doing that!
Thanks you guys! :)
Avanika – Yes I did, but I used a small measuring spoon, I think it was a 1/4 teaspoon :) Thank you!
What beautiful little thumbprints. I love how you made a whole assortment of them. By the way, I'm holding a giveaway on my blog for Orglamix Organic makeup and you're welcome to come by and enter. http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2010/12/orglamix-organic-mineral-makeup-review.html
Heading to the kitchen to make these little beauts right now!
Thanks Lisa!!
Yay Suzanne, let me know what you think!
Love thumbprint cookies – I would love it if you linked them in my Cookie Exchange!
Susan,
http://entertainexchange.blogspot.com/
Party and Entertaining Inspiration
Amanda, thank you SO much for this post. I have also made these thumbprint cookies for 15 years, but this past year lost that very well used and loved cookbook during a divorce, moving, etc. When I searched for Raspberry Thumbprint cookies with orange juice….there it was again! I am going to have a perfect Christmas with the cookies on the plate in their proper place. Last, thanks for the great tip on keeping the spillage down.
Yay, that’s wonderful Cathy!! So glad you found it and I have a fellow thumbprint cookie lover :)
I like to roll the dough balls in the egg white prior to making the filling holes. Handles much better and has a nice browned crust without overcooking. Been making them since the 80′s.
Great recipe! Thank you for sharing. Just wondering how many dozens one batch makes. ;D
Oh my, good question Annette! When I make them again this year I will update this post and include the number of cookies that this makes.
Can you use imperial margarin instead of butter?
Hi Kim. I have not tried this recipe with margarine so I can’t tell you for sure. I know that margarine and butter are often times interchangeable in recipes, so you could certainly give it a try :)
I am looking for a pineapple cornflake thumbprint recipe.
Do you have one? My mother made these in the ’50′s.
Hi Phyllis :) I don’t have one personally, but I did find this one on the internet http://www.recipelink.com/msgbrd/board_1/2011/FEB/9182.html
Thank you for posting this recipe. The Good Housekeeping Isslustrated cook book is a family fave. Its where all of our Christmas recipes come from. This year my mom is not in town for Christmas and i was panicking about how i would find this recipe.Everyone else makes theirs with nuts…That is NOT tradition lol. but thank you thank you now i am going to make them the way our family always has.
I agree, love that cookbook and thumbprints shouldn’t have nuts haha! ;-) My daughter and I are making these tomorrow!
These look great. Do you think you could substitute the orange juice for another type of juice? I’m allergic to oranges, and it might not be so bad since its cooked into the cookies, but I don’t typically risk it.
You could probably replace it with milk if you wanted to. Maybe lemon juice, but not sure I would try something other than citrus.