These strawberry jam tarts feature a buttery shortbread cookie base, filled with strawberry jam in the center. Super easy, delicious treat, perfect as tea time snacks .
I miss Australia and New Zealand. There are a lot of things that I’m homesick for which I can’t find here. One of them is NZ Marmite or the Australian Vegemite (there is a difference… don’t ask me what it is though). Besides that Whittaker’s Chocolate and Arnotts Biscuits are also really popular in that part of the world.
I’ve shared a bunch of Australian recipes on the blog before, and one of the cookies that I loved to eat were the raspberry tartlet biscuits (aka cookies). This is a beautiful shortbread cookie with a jammy sweet raspberry or strawberry center! Perfect for tea time or any time really.
Without a place to buy some in the US, now I have resorted to making my own strawberry jam tarts!
Strawberry jam tarts
I love buttery shortbread cookies. The ones with extra butter taste so amazing, and perfect to have with tea or coffee, especially these buttery espresso shortbread cookies !.
For this jam tarts recipe, I remember the shortbread base being less crumbly, so I adapted my shortbread recipe to make the tarts. I used homemade strawberry jam instead of raspberry jam, but you can use any kind of homemade or store-bought jam .
Whatever fruit jam / jelly / fruit preserve is your favorite (this plum jam , concord grape jam , and fig jam are a few of my favorites).
How to make strawberry jam tarts
This dough is easy to handle if it’s cold. Don’t be afraid to refrigerate / freeze it – even in between cuttings, or even while preparing the cookies. Anytime the dough seems to be getting soft or hard to handle, stick it in the freezer for a few minutes.
Once the dough is rested, roll it out evenly so it has a thickness of about 1/8th of an inch.
Using the larger cutter cut out circles and remove the scrap around them first. Do not try to lift the circles out because if they have become soft, they will tear – I guarantee it!
Instead, transfer the circles into the freezer for a few minutes to harden them up, and you can start working with them again.
In this picture you can see I used a smaller cutter to make impressions that form the edge of the tarts. This is more time consuming.
Best way to shape the jam tarts
Instead, take a glass or cylindrical tube (preferably with a base) and flour the bottom and sides. Place it in the middle. Press it down gently and then press the edges against the wall of the glass. When you remove the glass – you would have made a raised edge around the tartlet. Much easier!
For an even easier option – Make 1 inch balls and flatten them out using your fingers. Using your thumb, leave a larger dent in the middle – similar to classic thumbprint cookies .
Place a generous amount of jam (I used strawberry) in the middle of the tarts – about 3/4 – 1tsp – but this depends on the cookie diameter you use.
Spread evenly in the middle and carefully place them on a parchment paper topped (or greased and floured) cookie tray and bake in a 350°F/ 180 °C oven until the bottom and the edges become light golden brown. Take them out immediately and let them cool.
Storage
These will keep for a couple of days in an airtight container, but best when eaten on the same day. Trust me they are amazing! They are soft and buttery and the strawberry jam is beautiful and yummy! You could store them for longer in the fridge though.
Eating these jam tarts made me so warm and happy inside! Especially with tea or a glass of milk. I used to eat the edges first and then the middle… I still do. It tastes better that way somehow.
However you decide to eat it… it tastes amazing! The original raspberry tartlets had a thicker base and crust, but I actually liked the thinner base. It’s a better shortbread to jam ratio! 🙂
Recipe
I love the red jammy center not only for the taste but it just looks like summer too. Don’t you agree?
You don’t have to be a Kiwi or Aussie to enjoy these! These are great for any kind of occasion. Give them a try 🙂 Now if only I could make my own Tim Tams (if I ever do, these Tim Tam Slams would be a no brainer!).
There’s a reason why Classic Thumbprint Cookies are so popular. They are a holiday favorite, easy to make, and even easier to customize with different filling and flavor variations!
I’ve shared all my tips and tricks to help you PERFECT easy thumbprint cookies!
Oh baby, it’s cookie season! It’s one of the main reasons why I love Christmas! 🙂
And with alllll the Christmas cookies out there, it’s hard – nigh impossible, for me to pick a favorite. But Classic Thumbprint Cookies …. oh yeah, they come this close to being my favorite.
Thumbprint cookies are a holiday favorite, a party favorite, and a snack favorite for me. These are one of half a dozen or so that feature in my holiday cookie boxes every year. Shortbread cookies , linzer cookies , meringue cookies , soft ginger cookies etc. are all classics for a reason.
Plus, these cookies are really easy to make and to customize too.
I’ve shared a uniquely delicious savory thumbprint cookie on the blog before, which is really popular on the blog. But I realized I’ve never shared a classic thumbprint cookie recipe with you guys before. So today, I’m going to fix that.
This is the recipe for delightfully buttery and delicious classic thumbprint cookies with a sweet jam filling . I’m sharing all my tips to help you make PERFECT thumbprint cookies and avoid cracks and spreading.
Just follow this easy guide to find out how you can nail those classic thumbprint cookies and entertain your friends and family this holiday season!
What are thumbprint cookies?
A buttery cookie with a shallow well in the middle that’s filled with a sweet filling like jam. You use your thumb to push down on the cookie dough, creating that shallow well in the middle – hence “thumbprint” cookies.
But did you know that thumbprint cookies originated in Sweden? These cookies are called Hallongrotta/hallongrottor in Swedish, meaning “raspberry cave”!
While you can fill the thumbprint in the middle with any type of jam you like, I’ll be using raspberry jam here, because that’s the flavor of classic thumbprint cookies! But I have filled these before with strawberry jam , plum jam , fig jam , and grape jelly too.
Are thumbprint cookies the same as shortbread cookies?
They are not the same, but they do come VERY close. Shortbread cookies use a 1:2:3 ratio of sugar, butter and flour. They are buttery, but crumblier, because they don’t have a binding agent. They rely on butter to hold the dough together.
Thumbprint cookies are made with a dough that’s identical to shortbread cookies, BUT the dough has eggs in addition. Some recipes call for whole eggs, but my recipe uses egg yolks only.
The egg yolk enriches the dough giving you a richer taste than shortbread, but more importantly, binds the dough together for a smoother and more pliable result.
That being said, you still CAN make thumbprint cookies with shortbread cookie dough as well.
How can I prevent my thumbprint cookies from cracking?
To be honest, there’s nothing wrong with thumbprint cookies with a few cracks along the edges. That’s part of the charm!
However, there are ways to minimize cracking. It’s got all to do with HOW you shape the cookies .
How to minimize thumbprint cookie cracking
- Keep the dough soft – once the cookie dough is made, cover and let it rest for at least 15 minutes at room temperature, so that the dough will be easier to handle, and be less sticky. It’s important to keep the dough at room temp. when you roll it into balls, because then it’s easier to shape the soft dough, with minimal cracking.
- Make the indentation as soon as the cookies are formed – rather than rolling ALL of the cookie dough into balls first and THEN making wells, you should roll each cookie dough ball, place it on the cookie tray and immediately make the indentation BEFORE preparing the next one.
- Roll the cookie dough balls until the surface is smooth – since the dough is soft, it’s easy to get a nice, smooth surface. Make sure there are no cracks to begin with, so that they don’t widen and show up when you press down on the cookie balls to create the wells.
To elaborate on the second point above, the reason why I like to prepare each thumbprint cookie as I go is that once you have rolled the cookie into a smooth ball, the cookie will form a “crust” – much like any dough will do, if it’s left exposed to air for any amount of time. So if you wait until the end to create the wells in the middle, the crust will most definitely cause the cookies to crack. To avoid that, I do the following.
How to make thumbprint cookies
- First, portion the cookie dough with a cookie scoop.
- Roll the cookie dough into a smooth ball.
- Roll the smooth ball in sugar (optional).
- Place the cookie ball on the parchment paper-lined baking tray.
- Use my thumb or another kitchen utensil to form an indentation in the middle of the cookie.
- Repeat steps 1-5 with the rest of the cookie dough.
- Once the baking tray is filled with cookies, fill the wells with jam.
- You can either fill a second tray with more cookies and keep those in the fridge or freezer, OR wrap any remaining dough tightly with plastic wrap and keep it at room temperature until you’re ready to use.
I also like to coat these easy thumbprint cookies in sugar before placing them on the baking tray. You can use regular granulated sugar or raw sugar for this. I prefer d emerara sugar because that gives these thumbprint cookies a nice sweet crunchy texture as well.
And rather than rolling the cookie balls in sugar, I put the sugar in a small ziploc bag and then place a cookie inside the bag, and then shake it a little bit to evenly coat the cookie with sugar. Works like a charm.
How to minimize thumbprint cookie spreading
It’s pretty much impossible to make a good cookie with NO spreading at all. I mean, in theory you can add more flour to the dough until it’s pretty stiff and won’t spread at all, but then you end up with very dry, crumbly cookies.
Not good.
The simple reason why a cookie spreads as it bakes is that the butter and sugar melt inside the cookie, causing it to spread. If you bake at too low a temperature, the cookie will spread too much before it bakes and sets properly, and if you bake at too high a temp., then the cookie bakes and sets outside quickly, but the middle will still be raw.
Tips to minimize cookie spreading
- Chill the cookies in the fridge BEFORE baking – cooling the butter in the cookies before baking means that it won’t melt as readily, making it spread too fast.
- Use a chilled or room temperature baking sheet – NEVER use a hot or warm baking sheet to place your UNBAKED cookies on. I like to chill the cookies AND the baking tray together in the fridge, but at least make sure the baking tray is at room temp. before you place the unbaked cookies on it.
- Make the indentation in the middle narrow rather than wide – use just the tip of your finger and go straight down, to create a narrow indentation in the middle of the cookie, rather than a wide indentation that would make the thumbprint cookie spread.
So there you go! That’s how you can make PERFECT and EASY thumbprint cookies that are sure to impress your friends and family! 🙂
Then you can fill these classic thumbprint cookies with any type of jam you like. Personally, I love raspberry, or apricot jam.
These easy thumbprint cookies are so so good! The cookies are buttery, with a hint of vanilla, and a deliciously fruity jam filling.
And since these classic thumbprint cookies are so easy to make, you can make multiple batches and gift them to your friends and family this holiday season too. You can fill them with different jam fillings, and even flavor the thumbprint cookies with different extracts for some creative variations.
Flavor variations
- Add some orange zest to the cookie dough, and fill the middle with cranberry sauce.
- Add some lemon zest to the cookie dough, and fill the cookies with blueberry jam.
- Or instead of jam, place a reese’s peanut butter cup or a hershey’s kiss candy in the middle.
- Add some almond extract to the cookie dough, and fill the middle with salted caramel sauce .
There are so many ways you can dress up these easy thumbprint cookies! Once you realize how easy it is to make classic thumbprint cookies, you can make them your own.
Recipe
Easy Strawberry Jam Tarts
Ingredients
- 500 g all-purpose flour 4 cups
- 226 g unsalted butter 2 sticks
- 175 g sugar ¾ cup
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup jam or fruit preserve for the filling. I use strawberry, but you can use your favorite fruit jam
Instructions
- In a mixer bowl, beat the butter and sugar until creamy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and mix until well combined.
- Change mixer speed to low, and start adding the flour until it comes together to form a soft dough.
- Turn out the dough onto a well floured surface and knead for a few seconds until it comes together and forms a smooth ball.
- Gently pat out the ball to a disc and cover with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
- The rested dough can become sticky when it thaws out. To prevent it sticking to the bench surface or rolling pin, roll out the rested, refrigerated dough between two non-stick parchment paper to a thickness of 1/8 of an inch (or 3- 4mm).
- If the dough gets soft after it has been rolled out - transfer the rolled out dough into the freezer for a few minutes.
- With a cookie cutter, cut out circles and remove the scraps around it. You can re-roll the scraps once to cut more cookies.
- Use a shot glass with a smaller diameter or a similar cylindrical object and dip it into some flour and place it in the middle of the cut out cookies.
- Press this gently in the middle of the cookie and using your fingers take the exposed edges of the cookie and press it against the wall of the shot glass to form a wall.
- Gently remove the glass and repeat on all the cookies. If it gets soft, refrigerate them as it is will be easier to handle when cold.
- Spoon about 1/2 to 3/4 of a tsp of jam in the middle of each cookie and spread it evenly being careful to not let it overflow.
- Bake in a 350°F/180°C for about 15 minutes (depending on the size of the cookies) until the cookies are just starting to become golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let them cool on a cooling rack to room temperature.
- Best eaten immediately, or store in an airtight container for 2-3 days at room temperature (longer in the fridge).
Nutrition
Recipe from The Flavor Bender by Dini Kodippili
Easy Strawberry Jam Tarts https://www.theflavorbender.com/jam-tartlet-biscuits-childhood-favourites/
