Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies

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