Jam Thumbprints

There are some sources for recipes that I trust. Ina Garten, or the Barefoot Contessa, is one of them. She is like my mom, in that I know if she gives me the recipe, it will be good. These Jam Thumbprint cookies are SO easy and SO good. I love the short ingredient list, the chewy cookie and the taste. My sister tried one for the first time this year and she had to restrain herself.

The cookie itself is a shortbread. The dough is rolled into balls, then rolled in an egg wash, then coconut. I have tried the cookies with and without the coconut and they are just not as good without the coconut. When comparing the with versus without, the cookie with the coconut had a better texture.The coconut isn't a big flavor in the end cookie. Even if you are not a coconut fan, you have to try these.  Ray is not the biggest fan of coconut but he goes crazy for them.

I have tried apricot, raspberry and a mixed berry jam and prefer the berry flavor. I also make my cookies a little smaller than the orginal recipe. Again, just my preference.

The dough can be doubled easily, which is nice if you are in need of a lot of cookies. If you have the dough made and chilled, you can really crank these out. I made a double batch and had them finished in a little over 2 hours.

Jam Thumbprints
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa


3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
7 ounces sweetened flaked coconut
Raspberry and/or apricot jam

 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.


In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until they are just combined and then add the vanilla. Separately, sift together the flour and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix until the dough starts to come together. Dump on a floured board and roll together into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.


Roll the dough into 1-inch balls. (If you have a scale they should each weigh .7 ounce.) Dip each ball into the egg wash and then roll it in coconut. Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and press a light indentation into the top of each with your finger. Drop 1/4 teaspoon of jam into each indentation. Bake for 18 minutes, until the coconut is a golden brown. Cool and serve.