Monday, November 21, 2011

Christmas Thumbprints

I love Christmas cookies.
I love to bake them. 
I love to wrap them up all fancy like and give them away.
 I love to eat them!!

The Christmas cookies I love the most are Christmas Thumbprints. They are simple and basic, but pretty and tasty! I have been making this version for years. I hope you enjoy them!
Christmas Thumbprints
This makes 8 dozen cookies

2 cups Butter
1 cup Sugar
4 Egg Yolks
4 teaspoon Vanilla
5 cups Flour
1 teaspoon Salt

Thumbprint Icing
1 cup Confectioners Sugar
1 tablespoon Water
Colors for icing

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Put your butter,
and your sugar in a mixing bowl.
Cream until fluffy.
Add your egg yolks and mix in.
Add vanilla and mix.
In a separate bowl, mix your flour and salt.
Add your dry ingredients to your wet ones.
Mix together.
Once your mix is together, start making small 1"-1 1/2"
balls of dough. I used a small cookie dough scoop to
get them started, but you can do this without a scoop
also. Using both hands, form the ball from the scoop
into a round ball of dough.
Place the dough balls on your cookie sheet.
Bake for 10-12 minutes. The bottoms will be golden brown.
The tops are a little tougher to see, but they will be done if the
bottoms are.
Immediately after pulling the cookies out of the oven,
use your thumb, or the back of a measuring spoon to make
a round indention in each cookie.
It should look like this one. It is alright if they crack
a little. It gives them character!!
Looking good!
 Lets make our icing!
Mix together your confectioners sugar and 1 tablespoon water.
If you need more water, add some, but don't make the icing too runny.
This is what you want for consistency.
Divide the icing into 2 bowls, and add color
until you get the color you are looking for.
Start filling your cookies. If I had any left over, I would use
baby spoons. They are the perfect size!
Looking good!
One of the reasons I make so many of these cookies,
is that I give away a lot of trays of holiday cookies.
I love to use these on every tray. They are small,
and add a punch of color.

Thanks for joining
The Freshman Cook today.

Stop back again for more holiday treats!!

4 comments:

  1. My hubby and kids would LOVE these!!! Copying to try :)

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  2. Ohhh, I love this idea! They look similar to some cookies at a local bakery that I just adore!! I should give these a try this year

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  3. Is the Icing better with the Cream of Tarter or not? There are some recipes with & some without - what is your preference? Thanks :)

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    Replies
    1. Hi!
      I always use the cream of tartar. It helps the frosting stay creamy, and helps create volume. I apologize for the delay in answering your question. I hope this helps!

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