Thumbprint Cookies Recipe
Who would have thought that a cookie that uses the creator’s own fingerprint could be so pretty to look at, and so tasty to eat! Their small size makes it easy to satisfy your craving for something sweet without overindulging.
This thumbprint cookie recipe uses nut or seed butter as a base instead of flour so the cookies are completely gluten-free. You can choose to use anything from almond butter to sunflower seed butter. The entire recipe only contains four ingredients: the nut or seed butter of your choice, egg, coconut sugar and a jam of your choice.
They literally take only about five minutes to create and then you just pop them in the oven for a half hour. When it comes to homemade desserts, it doesn’t get much easier than this thumbprint cookie recipe.
What Are Thumbprint Cookies?
Thumbprint cookies are a type of handmade cookie. They are created by pressing the center of the dough with the thumb and then filling the impression with a tasty substance, most commonly jam. In Sweden, thumbprint cookies are called hallongrotta. The name is quite fitting — it means “raspberry cave” in Swedish. (1)
Typical thumbprint cookie recipes include all-purpose flour, but my recipe leaves out the flour and replaces it with nutrient-rich nut butter (I chose almond). Most recipes also call for sugar, but this recipe uses coconut sugar, one of my five best sugar substitutes.
How to Make Thumbprint Cookies
You might have been told as a kid not to play with your food, but making thumbprint cookies actually requires being somewhat kid-like and getting your hands in the mix, literally. This recipe for jam thumbprint cookies allows you to use a jam of your choosing. I highly recommend choosing a jam that is free of added sugar.
What’s a good jam choice? Raspberry thumbprint cookies are a popular choice and they are made with you guessed it — raspberry jam.
If you’re not a fan of jam or just want to switch it up, you can also make chocolate thumb print cookies and sub a bit of high-quality dark chocolate for the jam. Around the winter holidays, thumbprint snowman cookies are also common.
I’m about to tell you how to make easy thumbprint cookies using a jam of your choice that are quick, delicious and truly satisfying.
While the oven is preheating to 350 F, add the nut or seed butter, egg and coconut sugar to a medium bowl.
Next, mix the three ingredients until they are well combined. Now it’s time to get your baking sheet ready for action. Line a 8 x 10 baking sheet with parchment paper (preferably unbleached parchment paper).
Roll the mixture into small balls and add them to the lined baking sheet about two inches apart.
Now it’s time for the most enjoyable part of this recipe — the thumbprints! Using a clean thumb, make a small indent into the center of each cookie. Remember the prints don’t have to be perfect.
Add a jam of your choice to the indents you just created with your thumb.
Bake cookies for 20 to 25 minutes.
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Thumbprint Cookies Recipe
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This thumbprint cookie recipe uses nut or seed butter as a base instead of flour so the cookies are completely gluten-free. You can choose to use anything from almond butter to sunflower seed butter. The entire recipe only contains four ingredients: the nut or seed butter of your choice, egg, coconut sugar and a jam of your choice. They literally take only about five minutes to create and then you just pop them in the oven for a half hour.
Ingredients
- 1¼ cup nut or seed butter
- 1 egg
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- ½ cup jam of choice for filling, such as raspberry
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- In a medium bowl, add the nut or seed butter, egg and coconut sugar.
- Mix until well combined.
- Line a 8 x 10 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll mixture into balls and add them to the baking sheet.
- Using your thumb, make a small indent into the cookie.
- Add jam to indent.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 8.8g
- Sodium: 51.7mg
- Fat: 7.5g
- Saturated Fat: 0.7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6.6g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 11.9g
- Fiber: 0.8g
- Protein: 2.5g
- Cholesterol: 7mg
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10 Comments
Nutritional information? It’s basic needed info
Hi Tanyua, this information is now provided in the article for you.
Thank you Dr Axe, I too, appreciate the nutritional information, because I watch my calorie intake.
Can you tell me what nut & seed butter is? I use almond butter, sunflower butter, cashew butter, but never heard of nut & seed butter for the thumbprint cookies.
Hi Theresa, you can choose whichever nut or seed butter you would like for this recipe. I typically choose almond butter.
almond butter is made from almond which is a nut, sunflower butter is made from sunflower seeds and cashew butter is made from cashew which is a nut!!!
We are currently in the process of including nutritional information for all recipes. In general, these recipes are tailored for specific diets like that of celiac, as well as other health-related problems.
Tina, I don’t use dairy products either–I am allergic to them. Try almond milk for cooking and baking and if you like yogurt, there is coconut or soy yogurt which are both very tasty.
I am also drinking a glass of warm water (bottled, not from the tap!) with 2 t. freshly squeezed lemon juice and 1/2 t. Bragg’s apple cider vinegar every morning. I have lost 10 # and 2 inches off my hips and waist in 2 months. I also watch my portion sizes.
Try it and see what happens.
Trishea
Patti, I love almond milk and coconut yogurt; However, I don’t recommend using soy products. Best of luck on your health journey.
I have been trying to eat healthy for a while but with my work schedule it seems it never works out, at least not for the long run. I can not eat any dairy products like milk, yogurt, etc….
However l need to loose 10 to 15 lbs and that seems impossible to do no matter how much I diet it doesn’t work. I really could use some help.