Thumbprint Cookies

Thumbprint cookies are delightful molded and filled cookies with origins that raise some dispute. Some people credit their invention to Jews from Eastern Europe, and others suggest that Poland first produced the cookies. No matter who invented them, they are now enjoyed in many parts of the world and can be fun to bake at home.

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 egg whites, lightly beaten until they start to foam up
3/4 cup walnuts, finely chopped [1/2 cup is usually enough]
Flavored jellies for filling: raspberry or red current (red), mint (green), apricot (gold)

Beat together the butter, brown sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla until light and fluffy and no longer looks curdled. Sift together and stir in the flour and salt. Shape dough by teaspoonful into balls with palms of hands. Dip into slightly beaten egg white, then in the chopped nuts.

[Note: If the dough seems sticky, let the dough rest for 15 or 30 minutes so the flour absorbs some of the moisture. Or chill the dough covered for about twenty minutes.]

Place 1 inch apart, nut-side up, on ungreased cookie sheets. Make a dent in the center of each with your finger or the end of a wooden spoon.

Bake in 375 degree oven for 5 minutes. Enlarge hole, if need be, in each cookie. Bake again for about 8 minutes until browned on the bottom. Mine take only 9 minutes total.

Remove to wire racks to cool thoroughly. Fill centers with different flavored jellies. [I like to use raspberry jam for red, mint jelly for green, and apricot jelly for gold.] Let dry before packing into containers. Use waxed paper to separate layers.

Makes about 3 dozen small cookies. [I got about 30 using my cookie scoop and indenting the dough slightly in the scoop.]