Red Currant Jelly Thumbprint Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and 1/2 cup sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg yolk and vanilla; beat well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt; add to butter mixture, beating on low until combined.
• Combine ground almonds with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl. Form dough into 1-inch balls, and dip in beaten egg white, then in almond-and-sugar mixture. Make a deep indentation in the center of each ball with your finger or a wooden spoon. Place 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.
• Bake 10 minutes, remove from oven, and press down the centers again. Rotate sheets, and bake until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes more. Transfer sheets to a wire rack to cool slightly. Fill center of each cookie with about 1 teaspoon jam. Let cool completely. Thumbprints can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container, between parchment, up to 1 day (or 3 days, if not filled with jam).

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the hazelnuts or pecans out on a small baking sheet and cook in oven, shaking several times, until toasted, 10 to 12 minutes. If using hazelnuts, transfer to a bowl to cool, cover with a folded dish towel, then rub off the skins. (No need to toast the pistachios.)
• Once cooled, transfer the nuts to a food processor, preferably a mini one. Add 2 teaspoons flour and pulse just until nuts are finely ground, being careful not to overprocess.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Add egg yolks and vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well combined, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl a few times as needed.
• Add 1/2 cup ground nuts, the salt and the remaining 2 1/4 cups flour; beat on low speed just until combined, then increase speed and beat until dough starts to clump together. Scrape the bowl and fold a few times to make sure everything is well mixed. Wrap dough in plastic wrap, flatten into a disk, and chill until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Pinch off small pieces of dough the size of a rounded tablespoon (about 20 grams each) and roll the top half of each one in the remaining ground nuts. Place a few inches apart on parchment- or silicone mat-lined baking sheets. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven and make a thumbprint in each cookie. Bake until golden brown on the bottom, and nuts are looking toasty but not burned, 6 to 8 minutes longer. Let cool a few minutes on the baking sheets and transfer to wire racks to cool further. While the cookies are still a little warm, fill each one with about 1/2 teaspoon of filling, and cool completely. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 f.
• Grease a baking sheet.
• Sift flour onto a pastry board and make a well in the centre.
• Add sugar, vanilla sugar and egg yolks to well.
• Mix a small amount of flour into the ingredients in the well to make a thick paste.
• Cut cold butter into small pieces over the flour mixture.
• Working quickly and starting from the centre, work all the ingredients together to make a smooth dough.
• Chill dough for 1/2 hour.
• Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a 3mm (1/8 ") thickness.
• Cut into 5 cm (2 ") rounds.
• Cut 3 small holes using a floured thimble, in half of the cut out rounds, or use a smaller cookie cutter to cut a hole in the centre (you can use linzer cookie cutters if you have them).
• Place on prepared baking and bake on middle rack of oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown.
• Cool cookies.
• Spread jam on the solid rounds and cover with the cut out rounds.
• Dust with the icing sugar while the cookies are still warm (easiest way is to dip cut out cookie into icing sugar before placing on top of jam layer.

Steps:

• Place the currants into a large pot, and crush with a potato masher or berry crusher if you have one. Pour in 1 cup of water, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the fruit through a jelly cloth or cheese cloth, and measure out 5 cups of the juice.
• Pour the juice into a large saucepan, and stir in the sugar. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat, and stir in the liquid pectin immediately. Return to a full rolling boil, and allow to boil for 30 seconds.
• Remove from heat and skim off foam from the top. Ladle or pour into sterile 1/2 pint jars, filling to within 1/2 inch of the top. Wipe the rims with a clean damp cloth. Cover with new sterile lids and rings. Process covered in a bath of simmering water for 10 minutes or the time recommended by your local extension for your area.

Steps:

• In large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy.
• Separate eggs.
• Place whites in a small bowl, lightly beat; set aside.
• Add egg yolks and vanilla to butter mixture.
• Beat well.
• In another bowl, stir together flour and salt.
• Gradually add flour & salt to butter mixture, Blending thoroughly.
• With your hands, roll dough into balls about 1-inch diameter.
• Dip each ball in eggs whites, then roll in finely chopped walnuts to coat.
• Place on greased baking sheets,spacing 1 inch apart.
• With your thumb or the tip of a spoon (I use my thumb), make an indentation inthe center of each ball.
• Neatly fill each indentation with 1/4 teaspoon jelly or jam.
• (If using icing fill each cookie after baking.) Bake in a 375° oven for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Let cool on baking sheets for about 1 minute, then transfer to rack and let cool completely.
• This is when I fill each with icing.