Eggless Thumbprint Cookies | Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies | Rosenmunnar

These Eggless thumbprint cookies | shortbread thumbprint cookies | shortbread jelly cookies are rich, buttery, tender, crumbly and melt in the mouth. Made with just five basic ingredients, these are easily adaptable to endless variations. Bake up a batch, or two or more this Holiday season coz they will be gone sooner than you think! 

The Holidays are going to be upon us pretty soon. And I’ve made a list of goodies to share with you guys, starting with this classic Holiday favorite- Thumbprint Cookies, traditionally known as rosenmunnar, which are basically, buttery Swedish cookies with jam in the middle. 

If you are looking for some easy Holiday cookies | Christmas cookie recipes, you have to add these awesome homemade thumbprint cookies to your cookie platter because –

1. They are really easy, I promise. You just need about 15-20 mins of prep time for the cookie dough, shaping, and filling it with jam. 
2. There is no chilling or rolling involved. So no worries about the dough cracking and sticking and loads of other issues. 
3. Plus guys, look how pretty they look especially when you fill them with an assortment of jams or jellies.
4. The taste – what it all comes down to after all. These jelly-filled cookies taste amazing, imagine taking a bite of these cookies, they are crisp yet so tender they literally crumble in your mouth with a little bit of the chewy texture from the sweet jam/jelly. These are little bites of heaven! 

EGGLESS THUMBPRINT COOKIES INGREDIENTS | WHAT ARE THE INGREDIENTS FOR THUMBPRINT COOKIES?

These easy thumbprint cookies require just 5 basic ingredients, not counting salt and your flavoring agents.

1. Butter, salted or unsalted both work in this recipe. 
2. Flour 
3. Cornstarch, an ingredient that makes these cookies really light and gives it an amazing crisp-tender texture. You can skip the cornstarch if you don’t have it and substitute it with flour instead. But if you do have some in your pantry, I highly recommend using it in this recipe.
4. Confectioners sugar or powdered/icing sugar, another ingredient which also gives a nice, light texture to these eggless thumbprint cookies. 
5. Jams, jellies or preserves of choice. I’ve used an assortment of mixed berry, strawberry and mango jam. It did make for a stunning and gorgeous cookie platter!

These thumbprint cookies are adapted from my Karachi Fruit Biscuits, which is basically similar to a shortbread cookie. It is one of the most tried and tested recipes on my blog, and it has been loved by all those who have tried it. It is that one cookie dough that I always have at the back of my hand. I don’t even need to look at the recipe, because I have made it so many times that I’ve literally lost track of the number of cookies I’ve dished out using that failproof cookie dough recipe.

The best part is how versatile it is, either slice-and-bake, or roll it out and make cut-outs, or roll the dough into balls, flatten and make individual cookies. It always yields such amazing treats to enjoy sans the eggs. This is the best thumbprint cookie recipe ever, without the eggs, and after trying these out I’m sure you will agree with me on this one. You could also use this dough to make reindeer cookies and many other theme related shapes for any occasion.

You could also make vegan thumbprint cookies by using vegan butter instead.

I’ve flavored these jam thumbprints | jelly thumbprint cookies with pure vanilla extract to make a vanilla thumbprint cookie recipe. You can get creative here and create your own variations. Don’t know from where to start? I’ve given a list of variations further down and how to go about it. I bet you will enjoy those flavors too:) 

VARIATIONS OF THUMBPRINT COOKIES USING THIS BASIC COOKIE DOUGH

These eggless thumbprint cookies are a gorgeous and lovely treat all year round. I don’t think they should be reserved only for the Holidays, they would be apt for any occasion. Here’s a very basic thumbprint cookie recipe along with numerous variations. So pick a few, and make some of these goodies to treat your family and friends this Holiday season.

• Thumbprint cookies with kisses | Hershey thumbprint cookies: Press a Hershey’s kisses candy into each indentation as soon as you remove it from the oven.
• Candy thumbprint cookies: Roll the cookie dough into 1-inch balls and press a candy melt in the center of each cookie. Bake for about 15 mins until edges are golden brown. 
• Red and green thumbprint cookies | Holiday thumbprint cookies: Press red or green candy melts or a halved candied cherry in the center of the cookies and bake as directed below. You can also roll the cookie dough in red or green sugar or use red and green sprinkles after filling the indentations with melted chocolate, Nutella etc
• Caramel thumbprint cookies: Use about 10 caramels, such as Kraft’s. Melt the caramels with 1 tbsp heavy cream in the microwave or in a pot over medium-low heat until smooth. Take it off the heat and set aside. Once the caramel is warm, fill each indentation of the baked cookies up to the brim. You may sprinkle sea salt or nuts. Let it cool completely before serving.
• Raspberry almond shortbread thumbprint cookies: Use 1/2 teaspoon almond extract instead of vanilla extract and use raspberry preserves or jelly to fill the indentations. Bake as directed in the recipe below.
• Walnut or pecan thumbprint cookies: Use about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of crushed walnuts or pecans for this recipe. Roll the cookie dough ball in flax egg or egg white and then coat it by rolling the ball in crushed nuts. Place them on a baking sheet, make the indentation and proceed with the recipe. 
• Lemon raspberry thumbprint cookies: Add about 1/2 tbsp of lemon zest along with vanilla extract to the dough. Fill the indentations with raspberry preserves or jelly. Bake as directed in the recipe below.
• Nutella thumbprint cookies: Fill the indentation with Nutella after the cookies have cooled down. Transfer the Nutella into a piping bag or ziplock bag (ends snipped off) and fill the cookies. Top with shredded coconut, sprinkles etc
• Raspberry thumbprint cookies: Use raspberry jam/jelly to fill the indentation.
• Blueberry thumbprint cookies: Use blueberry jam/jelly to fill the indentation.
• Apricot thumbprint cookies: Use apricot preserves/jelly to fill the indentation.
• Cinnamon thumbprint cookies: Swap 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract with the same amount of ground cinnamon. 
• Cardamom thumbprint cookies: Swap 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract with the same amount of green cardamom powder. 
• Thumbprint cookies with icing: For the icing, take 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and 1-2 teaspoons of milk, some lemon zest. Adjust the consistency of the icing with more milk if required. Combine everything and drizzle over the cookies once they cool down.
• Chocolate thumbprint cookies: Use this recipe of chocolate cookies, and make thumbprint cookies instead. 

HOW TO STORE THUMBPRINT COOKIES?

Once you fill the thumbprints they are good for around 2 days at room temperature, as the moisture in the jams tends to soften them. If you plan on making these thumbprint cookies in advance, bake them without adding the jam. Store the baked thumbprints in an airtight container and fill in the jam only before serving. This way they will keep for longer.

CAN YOU FREEZE THUMBPRINT COOKIES? IF YES, THEN HOW TO FREEZE THUMBPRINT COOKIES?

Yes, you can definitely freeze the cookies. Simply follow these steps-

• Place all the thumbprints in a good airtight container such as Tupperware.
• Place parchment paper or wax paper between each layer of cookies so that they don’t stick together.
• Make sure the container is sealed tightly as you don’t want other odors passing on to the cookies.
• Place the container in a foil and then into a plastic bag to avoid as much air from getting into the container.
• If you have the time and patience you may also wrap each cookie individually in waxed paper and place them all in a container or zip lock bag.
• Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature for about 30 mins before serving. You can freeze them with or without the jam.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE THESE EASY EGGLESS COOKIE RECIPES

• Eggless Bourbon biscuits
• Eggless badam pista biscuits, Karachi bakery style
• Coconut cookies
• Nankhatai (Indian shortbread cookies)
• Linzer cookies

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE EGGLESS THUMBPRINT COOKIES | BUTTER AND JAM THUMBPRINTS | SHORTBREAD BUTTER THUMBPRINT COOKIES

1.Line a baking sheet with Silpat or parchment paper. Sift the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a large mixing bowl.

2.Place butter in the bowl of your stand mixer (you can use your hand mixer or a whisk too), sift in powdered sugar, beat on low heat initially, until the powdered sugar is mixed with the butter, then increase the speed to medium and beat until pale, light and creamy, scraping down the bowl in between.

3.Add vanilla extract and mix well.

4.Now, switch to the lowest speed and add the dry ingredients in two parts, scraping down the bowl in between until well mixed. Gently bring the dough together. Do not knead. If at all the dough is dry, sprinkle few teaspoons of milk at a time, do not add too much. I didn’t require any milk. The dough should be soft.

5.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C. Shape the dough into 1 inch balls. I used a tablespoon and half to measure out the dough and form the balls, just so they are all uniform. Place the balls on the baking tray, about 2-inches apart.

6.Make an indentation in the center of each cookie gently, using your thumb or the back of a rounded 1/4 teaspoon. If the edges crack, simply fix it with your fingers. Or just leave it as it is, it doesn’t really matter.

7.Fill the centers of the cookies with jam right up to the brim, about 1/4 teaspoon.

8.Bake for 13-15 minutes or just until the edges are golden brown. Let it stand on the cookie sheet for about a minute, then transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.

NOTE

• The butter should be soft but not so soft that it is mushy. If you push the butter with your finger, it should slide with some resistance, leaving a dent behind. That is the correct consistency of the butter to be used in this recipe. Leave it for no more than 1 hour on the countertop to reach this stage. When the butter is too soft, you may end up using more flour as the dough might be sticky. Simply avoid this situation by ensuring the butter is not too soft.
• If the jam is too firm, transfer it to a microwave safe bowl and microwave for about 10 seconds or transfer to a heavy bottomed pot over medium-low heat,  stir it well to loosen it and fill the cookies. Make sure it is not very hot.
• If it is too hot and humid where you live, you may want to refrigerate the cookies after making the indentation. Doing so will prevent the cookies from spreading while baking. Add the jam after the refrigerating the cookies and bake as directed. 

HOW TO MAKE  EGGLESS THUMBPRINT COOKIES | JAM COOKIES? | THUMBPRINT BISCUITS RECIPE?

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I hope you guys enjoyed this easy thumbprint cookie recipe. I would love to hear from you if you try them out.

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Regards,

Freda