Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies
Sparkling Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies are a wonderful addition to spring parties and picnics!
Second only to chocolate chip cookies, thumbprints are the most requested cookie from my friends and family. I make all different varieties, some with coconut, some with chocolate, yet most with jam centers.
There is something endearing about thumbprint cookies that keeps you coming back for more. I love the addition of the tangy-sweet lemon curd in these Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies, but it almost doesn’t matter what you fill them with.
Upon first bite of a thumbprint you think… Simple, nothing special or fancy here. Then you eat another, and another, trying to figure out how these no-frills cookies can be so addictive.
While pondering your explanation, you look down and discover you’ve just eaten the entire plate of cookies on your quest of unleashing their alluring secrets.
That’s just it! The fact that they are just butter cookies holding a little filling makes them irresistibly perfect.
Life’s greatest pleasures aren’t always luxurious or extravagant. Consider family picnics in spring, hiking down a mountain trail to a little-known waterfall, taking time to bask in the sun after a week of rain. I often find the simplest things can be the most gratifying!
Plus, thumbprint cookies are fun and easy for kids to make. What’s not to love?
These irresistible Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies are tender and buttery with a touch of lemon zest in the dough. They have a dollop of zingy lemon curd resting in the middle so that each bite offers a bit of contrast.
Once the Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies cool, they stack well, making them great for edible gifts and potluck take-alongs.
You are going to love these!
Lemon Drop Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of one lemon
- 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup lemon curd
- 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. With an electric mixer, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest together until smooth. Scrape the bowl with a spatula. Turn the mixer on low and add the salt. Add the flour a little at a time, until it is just combined.
- Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll the dough into 1-ounce balls, about 1 1/2 tablespoons. Place them on the cookie sheets and press with your thumb to create a cavity in the center. It helps them to keep their shape if you hold the sides of the cookie with the other index finger and thumb. Press any cracks back into place.
- Fill each indentation with a scant 1/4 teaspoon of lemon curd. (Use just a little more if filling with jam.) Bake for 20-22 minutes. Remove them from the oven and immediately sprinkle the edges with turbinado sugar.
Nutrition
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My cookies just became flat when I baked them (and I made pretty deep thumbprints because I love lots of lemon curd). I still managed to shove an indent in them after they baked to hold the lemon curd, but definitely didn’t work like I imagined… Don’t know what I did wrong, I followed the recipe step by step! Oh well.
I was skeptical about the recipe – at first my dough turned out very dry. I tried balling up the dough, but it just crumbled so I added one egg and a teaspoon of almond milk and these turned out fabulous!
I made half the batch with lemon curd and half with blackberry preserves, which is a nice combination. I also made them in half ounce balls, so very small, and I got 6 dozen bite sized pieces. Delicious!
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Do you have a recipe for lemon curd?
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Is this recipe missing eggs?
Hi Allison! Nope. Butter cookies generally do not contain eggs.
Can we use brown sugar instead of turbinado sugar
Hi Kanika,
The turbinado sugar is primarily for looks. You can omit it, or substitute any other sugar on top.
oh these are looking so tasty. Love lemon cookies!
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I love jam filled cookies! They are perfect for tea-parties with my granddaughter!
I have just made a batch of lemon curd so now I am halfway there.
Love these lemon cookies. Thank you and have a great weekend.
I made these today, coffee house size, and the recipe was perfect. They’re delicious! :)
I love lemon desserts and baked goods. These look lovely!
I love using lemon in baking. These sound wonderful. I saved your recipe for next time when I make cookies.
I made lemon curd thumbprints last month and the curd bubbled up in the oven and spilled over! They didn't look half as adorable as yours but they still tasted pretty good. Now I see you've used just 1/4 tsp for each cookie; wish I'd seen your recipe sooner LOL
charming! delicious looking little cookies.
These look gorgeous, Sommer! I will come back to this recipe to make as petite little gifts in the future, as they are so pretty and sound delicious. I generally am not attracted to "jam" cookies, as I find them too sweet, but a lemon curd center changes everything! Yum.
Ooh lemon curd in thumbprints! There's something I've never tried! Looks delicious!
I love lemon and really love thumbprints. It never occurred to me to try thumbprint cookies this way. Thanks! I will try it!
I love citrus flavor in desserts. Thanks for thsi dessert, I would try it soon.
Chitra Ahluwalia Pal
http://chitrapal.blogspot.com