Sweet Tooth Sunday:Strawberry Jam Thumprint Cookies Recipe and Tutorial

Strawberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies
adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

2/3 cup buttered flavor shortening, or butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup strawberry jam

Beat shortening with an electric mixer. Add sugar and beat until combined. Add egg yolks one at a time. Then add vanilla and beat. After combined, add flour and beat until it begins to form a ball.

Form dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate dough for about an hour. Scoop dough into teaspoons and roll into balls. Gently press the center with your thumb. Bake for 9 minutes at 375°.

Leave the cookies on the sheet to cool for a few minutes then remove to a cooling rack. When cooled, put a small amount of jelly in the center of each cookie. Now enjoy a treat while you sew some for your little one!

Beat the shortening or butter with your mixer until softened.

Add the sugar and mix well.

You want to get all that sugar combined and light and fluffy.

Now is a good time to scrape down the sides of the bowl. You want to make sure that everything gets combined.

Add your egg yolks one at a time. Beat well in between each egg.

Now add the vanilla.

Then the flour. Start the mixer on LOW. If you start it too high, you'll be wearing flour!

The dough should pretty much come together on it's own at this point. Do not mix it until a ball though or it will be too tough.

Use your hands to form the dough into a ball and place it on some plastic wrap and wrap it up.

Refrigerate the dough for about an hour. Honestly, I usually skip this step. It helps if your dough is sticky and makes it easier to work with. I use shortening rather than butter so my dough isn't very sticky...

Scoop the dough out and place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. I think parchment is mandatory. Or a silpat. I used to have one but I think I burned it or something at one point because it started making everything taste nasty...anyhow, parchment...

Roll each cookie into a nice ball.

Then press the center down with your thumb. Blue nail polish optional. Bake them for about 9 minutes. Let them rest on the cookie sheet before you remove them. Since at 9 minutes the centers are still a bit undercooked, you want them to cook the rest of the way on the sheet. This makes for such a soft cookie!