These thumbprint cookies are soft, buttery, and filled with bright, fruity raspberry jam! The kind of simple, classic treat everyone loves. They look adorable and taste even better!
These cookies come together quickly, with basic pantry ingredients. The dough is soft and forgiving, needs no chilling time, and the centers hold any jam you love. Festive and crowd-pleasing, these jam thumbprint cookies are perfect for baking with kids, gifting, or adding a cheerful touch to your Holiday cookie box!
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What Are Thumbprint Cookies?
Also known as Butter Balls, Hallongrotta, Polish Tea cakes, and Bird's nest cookies, these cookies are believed to have originated in Sweden in the 19th century.
Thumbprint cookies are made with super simple ingredients - butter, sugar, flour, and jam. The name Thumbprint comes from the fact that the thumb is used to make an indentation into each ball of dough. The indentation can then be filled with your family's favorite fruit preserve. They are a treat for the eyes and for the taste buds.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
✨ The dough is simple to make and handle. This jam cookie recipe is wonderful for beginner and expert bakers alike.
✨ These cookies have the perfect texture! Soft, buttery, and so tender with a chewy, jammy center.
✨ These Christmas jam cookies look so festive without any extra effort!
✨Super versatile! You can use any kind of jam you wish, even homemade jams like this strawberry jam, mulberry chia jam, or fig jam will work.
✨These thumbprint cookies with jam are lovely for gifting. They stay well, pack well, and look so gorgeous!
Recipe Ingredients
Flour: All-purpose flour gives a nice, tender texture. You can use cake flour, too.
Butter: Please use softened butter. Salted or unsalted, either will work. If using unsalted butter, please add 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the flour.
Sugar: I like to use superfine sugar as it blends in with the butter very easily. Use regular granulated sugar if you wish,
Jam: I used store-bought raspberry jam. But feel free to use any kind you like.
Sesame seeds: I used a mix of black and white sesame seeds to coat the thumbprint cookies. This is a completely optional step. I love it as it adds a nice crunch and looks so pretty. You can also roll the cookie dough balls in finely chopped nuts if you wish.
Please see the recipe card below for full information about the ingredients and quantities.
Variations
Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies - Add cocoa powder to the dry ingredients.
Nutella Sea Salt Thumbprint Cookies - After baking, fill the indent with Nutella and sprinkle some sea salt on top
Iced Thumbprint Cookies - The indents can be filled with different colors of icing.
How To Make The Best Thumbprint Cookies
- Step 1: Preheat the oven to 180 °C / 350°F and line the baking tray with Silpat or parchment paper.
- Step 2: Take a large bowl, and beat softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Step 3: Stir in the flour. Knead lightly into a dough.
- Step 4: Add a tablespoon or two of milk or cream if needed to make the dough soft and pliable.
- Step 5: Scoop dough with an ice cream scoop into cookies, then roll the cookie dough into even-sized balls.
- Step 6: Take black and white sesame seeds in a small, shallow bowl and roll each cookie ball in this mixture.
- Step 7: Place the cookie dough balls on the prepared tray and make an indent in the center with your thumb.
- Step 8: Fill the indent with 1/4 -1/2 tsp raspberry jam.
- Step 9: Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are light golden brown in color. Be careful of overbaking!
- Step 10: Cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container.
Pro Tips
- I rolled cookie dough balls in sesame seeds for the delicious crunch and the gorgeous visual. This is, however, completely optional. The sesame seeds can be replaced with finely chopped nuts, granulated sugar, or even sparkling sugar. Or just leave the dough balls plain.
- This recipe is for eggless thumbprint cookies. However, two egg yolks can be added to the cookie dough to make the cookies richer.
- Avoid overbaking these cookies as they can end up dry. 10-12 minutes usually makes a perfect batch.
- I have used raspberry jam for the filling, but the thumbprint cookies can be filled with just about any jam flavor you like.
📖 Recipe
Best Thumbprint Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Butter, softened I used salted butter
- 3/4 cup Caster sugar
- 2 cups All-purpose flour
- 2-3 tbsp Milk Optional
- 2 Tbsp White sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp Black sesame seeds
- 1/4 cup Raspberry jam
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F and line a tray with parchment paper or Silpat.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.3/4 cup Butter, softened, 3/4 cup Caster sugar
- Stir in the flour. Use your hands to bring it together into a dough.2 cups All-purpose flour
- You may need to add a tablespoon or two of milk or cream if the dough is dry-ish.Your dough should be soft, silky to the touch, and pliable.2-3 tbsp Milk
- Scoop dough with an ice cream scoop into 20 cookies then roll the cookie dough into even-sized balls.
- Combine the black and white sesame seeds in a small, shallow bowl and roll each cookie ball in the seeds.2 Tbsp White sesame seeds, 2 tbsp Black sesame seeds
- Place the cookie dough balls on the prepared tray and make an indent in the center with your thumb.
- Fill the indent with 1/4 -1/2 tsp raspberry jam and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are light golden brown in color. 1/4 cup Raspberry jam
- Let the cookies cool on the tray for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wire-rack for cooling them completely.
- Store the cooled cookies in an air-tight container, and line each layer with a piece of wax paper. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- I rolled cookie dough balls in sesame seeds for the delicious crunch and the gorgeous visual. This is, however, completely optional. The sesame seeds can be replaced with finely chopped nuts, granulated sugar, or even sparkling sugar. Or just leave the dough balls plain.
- This recipe is for eggless thumbprint cookies. However, two egg yolks can be added to the cookie dough to make the cookies richer.
- Avoid overbaking these cookies as they can end up dry. 10-12 minutes usually makes a perfect batch.
- I have used raspberry jam for the filling, but the thumbprint cookies can be filled with just about any jam flavor you like.
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