Almond Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies with Raspberry Jam

These are classic shortbread thumbprint cookie. Any type of jam can be used in place of the raspberry jam. Take your pick!

Servings: -36 cookies

Author: Terri @ that's some good cookin'

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Prepare baking sheets either by lining them with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, or leave them ungreased. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric hand mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. (This recipe can also be made in a stand mixer.)
Add the sugar and almond extract and mix just until combined.
Spoon flour into a 1 cup measuring cup and level. Add the flour to the butter/sugar mixture and mix on low speed just until blended. Each cup of flour weighs 4.3-4.5 ounces.
Add the second cup of spooned four to the mixture and again mix just until blended. If the mixture is too heavy for your electric mixer, then stir the mixture with a sturdy spoon until well combined.. Do not over-mix.
Pinch off a small portion of dough and roll into a 1-inch ball. Place 12 dough balls on a prepared baking pan. I used a cookie scoop for consistency.
With the back of a round 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon or other suggested object (see intro at top of page), form a depression in each dough ball, about halfway into the dough. If the dough cracks, gently push the edges back together. I have found that too much flour in the dough makes the dough less malleable and more likely to crack.
Fill the depression with 1/2 teaspoon of seedless raspberry jam or jam flavor of choice.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, just until bottom of cookies turn a very light brown. Place on cooling rack to cool completely before glazing.

Mix the glaze ingredients together until smooth, adding milk by the teaspoon until glaze is of drizzling consistency.
To glaze, place the cookies on a cooling rack, then place the rack over a piece of parchment paper to catch the drips. Drizzle the glaze lightly over cooled cookies with a spoon..

Butter: Make sure the butter is at room temperature. Do not “soften” it in the microwave because it may get too soft or even melted. This will give an incorrect texture and will effect baking success.
Flour:Spoon the flour into a measuring cup. Do not scoop the flour with the measuring cup. You will end up with too much flour. Each cup of flour weighs about 4.3 ounces. Use a kitchen scale, if you have one.
Dough Texture: If your dough is too soft to handle (mine was not), put it in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes before forming into cookies.
Making the Indention on the Cookies: The indention for the jam can be made with the back of a round 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon, a melon baller, a small lid such as is on a chapstick tube or a bottle of extract, a cork, or the handle end of a wood spoon. Only press about halfway into the dough; don't go all the way to the bottom of the cookie because the jam will leak through the bottom. If the indention is not deep enough, however, the jam will spill out over the sides of the cookie while baking. If the dough cracks when the indention is made, simply press it gently back together with your fingers. No biggy.
Use Jam: Use jam, not jelly or preserves. Jam has the right consistency for baking. Stirring the jam well will aid in making it the right consistency for putting into the indention.