Try these Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies for the ultimate classic Christmas treat. With tips to make the best looking cookies!
Hands down, thumbrints are my most favorite Christmas cookie. I just love how the buttery shortbread and the slightly tart raspberry jam play together – such a wonderful holiday treat!
These are incredibly easy to make, and look very beautiful. I added my tips to make the best looking thumbprint cookies – I hope you’ll enjoy these just as much as we do!
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!
Ingredient notes
- Butter: Make sure to use butter that’s cold from the fridge and NOT softened or melted butter! Your recipe will not work out otherwise. Buttery spread or margarine cannot be substituted here.
- Flour: I always use all-purpose flour here. If you try this with a gluten free blend, please let me know how it works out for you! I love to make my recipes accessible to many people, and would love to include your experience here in the recipe.
- Sugar: Use granulated sugar for best results. Brown sugar shouldn’t be substituted here as it will alter the color of the cookie.
- Jam: I really prefer seedless for thumbprint cookies, and raspberry is by far my favorite. Feel free to experiment here! Lemon curd is very delicious, too.
- Note: Classic shortbread doesn’t have eggs or baking powder in it, in case you’re wondering if they are missing in the recipe.
How to make Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies
1. Start by blending cold butter with sugar and almond extract. Use a hand mixer with the beaters attached, or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
This will take a minute or two as the butter is cold, but it will come together.
2. Add the flour and salt and blend until a crumbly cookie dough forms. Again, this will take a little patience, but just keep going until you have a bowl full of soft, large crumbs.
3. Shape the dough into tablespoon-sized balls, place them spaced 2-inches apart on lined baking sheets and make an indent in the middle of each.
I always use a ½ teaspoon measurement, but you can just use your thumb if you prefer.
4. Fill the indentation of each cookie dough ball with jam. The jam will shrink down a little as it bakes, so make sure you add enough. Otherwise, your cookies will lack in jam later.
Now you need to freeze the shaped cookies for 15-20 minutes. This is important, if you skip the freezing your cookies will spread. Bake them until just lightly golden around the edges, then allow them to cool before icing them.
Recipe tips
Shaping the perfect thumbprint cookies: After many years of thumbprint cookie experience, I want to share my best tips for the picture perfect cookies with you:
- Shape the cookies BEFORE chilling the dough – making the holes for the jam is almost impossible to do neatly once the dough is chilled.
- Make the indent/hole for the jam with a ½ teaspoon measuring spoon. The cookies will look even and neat!
- Do not skip chilling the shaped cookies. They will spread too much in the oven if you don’t chill them.
- Fill them right to the edge with jam, or even slightly more, as the jam will reduce a little during baking.
- Bake only until they’re starting to get crisp and lightly browned around the bottom edges, otherwise they will turn out too dark and lose their pretty looks.
If you like, you can roll the cookie dough balls in granulated sugar before making the indent. You can also dust them with powdered sugar once they are baked and cooled, instead of using the glaze.
Freezer Instructions:
To freeze the raw cookie dough: You can freeze the shaped cookie dough for up to 3 months.
Freeze in a single layer on lined baking sheets for 1-2 hours or until solid, then place in freezer bags and label with the name and use-by date before freezing.
To bake, remove as many cookies as you want from the freezer bag and set them on a lined baking sheet. Fill with jam, then let them sit on the counter while the oven preheats. Bake as directed in the recipe, adding a couple of minutes to the baking time.
I do not recommend freezing the baked cookies, as the jam tends to turn a little weird after freezing/thawing.
More classic Christmas cookies
PS If you try this recipe, please leave a review in the comment section and add a star rating in the recipe card – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram.
Printable recipe
Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter cold from the fridge, diced
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ½ cups flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup seedless raspberry jam
Optional glaze
- ½ cup icing sugar or more as needed
- 1 teaspoon milk
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
Instructions
- Beat butter, granulated sugar and ½ teaspoon almond extract with a handheld mixer or a stand mixer until well combined.
- Add flour and salt. Mix on low speed until large, soft crumbs form (this may take a while, keep mixing until the sandy micture turns into cookie dough).
- Roll dough into 1 inch balls and set 2 inches apart on lined cookie sheets. Make an indent in the center of each ball (you can use your finger, but I like using a ½ teaspoon measuring spoon or the back of a wooden cooking spoon for a perfect look). Fill each indent with jam.
- Chill the shaped cookies for 2-4 hours in the fridge, or freeze for 1 hour.
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Bake the cookies (on tray at a time) for 13-16 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges and just set. Cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
Ingredient Notes:
Butter: Make sure to use butter that’s cold from the fridge and NOT softened or melted butter! Your recipe will not work out otherwise. Buttery spread or margarine cannot be substituted here. Flour: I always use all-purpose flour here. If you try this with a gluten free blend, please let me know how it works out for you! I love to make my recipes accessible to many people, and would love to include your experience here in the recipe. Sugar: Use granulated sugar for best results. Brown sugar shouldn’t be substituted here as it will alter the color of the cookie. Jam: I really prefer seedless for thumbprint cookies, and raspberry is by far my favorite. Feel free to experiment here! Lemon curd is very delicious, too. Note: Classic shortbread doesn’t have eggs or baking powder in it, in case you’re wondering if they are missing in the recipe.Baking Tips:
Shaping the perfect thumbprint cookies: After many years of thumbprint cookie experience, I want to share my best tips for the picture perfect cookies with you:- Shape the cookies BEFORE chilling the dough – making the holes for the jam is almost impossible to do neatly once the dough is chilled.
- Make the indent/hole for the jam with a ½ teaspoon measuring spoon. The cookies will look much more even and neat!
- Do not skip chilling the shaped cookies. They will spread too much in the oven if you don’t chill them.
- Fill them right to the edge with jam, or even slightly more, as the jam will reduce a little during baking.
- Bake just until they’re starting to get crisp and lightly browned around the bottom edges, otherwise they will turn out too dark and lose their pretty looks.
Patricia Magliano says
I made these 4 days before Christmas,
They are already gone.
Had to make more , this will be my favorite cookie recipe!!
Thank you!!
Elena says
Delicious! I made the cookies exactly as directed. Froze the shaped dough 1 hour and they came out great. I made half with homemade black raspberry jam and half with store bought red raspberry jam. I will definitely make them again,
Jennine James says
Hi Nora, I ran across your recipe and couldn’t wait for Christmas so i made these cookies tonight and they are so good. Thanks for sharing.
Irene Suggs says
This was an experience for me, as I have never made them. But I will make them again
Donna k says
5 stars !! I used a Teaspoon of vanilla extract not almond .. could not have been better .. But I disagree they freeze beautifully
Nora says
I’m so glad, Donna!
Lucy says
Hi Nora,
My dough didn’t come together and breaking apart when I shaped them to balls. Was so impossible to make the indent as they breaking. What have I done wrong?
Regards,
Lucy
Nora Rusev says
Hi Lucy, this happens very easily with shortbread dough. While it’s important not to overwork the dough, it’s still important to knead it a few times to make it smooth and soft. That’s why I chill the cookies after shaping – when the butter in the dough is too cold, the dough breaks apart when trying to shape it. It’s also VERY important to measure the flour correctly when baking these cookies. Do not scoop it with the measuring cup, as that will yield too much flour and a dry and crumbly dough. Instead, use a spoon to heapingly pile the flour into the measuring cup (it’s not supposed to be densely packed but fluffed up) and level it off with a knife. Hope that helps! Sorry you had a hard time making these!