Cherry Bakewell Thumbprint Cookies

I really like the flavors in a Bakewell Tart, in fact, it was the very first recipe I posted on this blog in 2008. I can’t believe that it’s been that many years! I have made a couple of different variations of Bakewell, including another Bakewell Cookie. I remember that recipe clearly and it remains one of my favorites. I found that recipe in a British cookie/biscuit book, which I found at the public library in Harrogate on a very rainy day.

This recipe is quite different, as this cookie is a thumbprint. This recipe comes from an Australian blogger, so some of the ingredients are different. It uses regular flour, instead of self-rising flour, but that is easier for me. You can use regular sugar or superfine sugar, but I used regular sugar as that is what I had on hand. I had almond meal, and I wished I had blanched almond meal, but I used what I had. I did use blanched sliced almonds, called flaked almonds elsewhere, so the cookies are pale but not as pale as they could be.

These cookies are interesting, as you bake them partially, then fill them with jam, and then finish baking. I really dislike thumbprint cookies where the jelly is added at the end and not baked, so this recipe avoids that. With the addition of the almond meal, these cookies have a decent crunch. My husband said that it would be interesting to try a cookie like this with marzipan or almond paste, and that would be great. This cookie is a good combination of the softer preserves and the crunchy cookie, which in my mind is perfect.

Cherry Bakewell Thumbprint Cookies

½ cup butter, room temperature

⅓ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

¾ cup flour

¾ cup almond meal

1 teaspoon baking powder

About 1 cup flaked/sliced almonds

About ½ cup cherry jam/preserves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and vanilla and beat on medium until light. Add the egg and mix to combine. Turn off the mixer and add the flour, almond meal, and baking powder. Turn the mixer on to low and stir just until the dough comes together. 

Slightly crush the flaked almonds and place in a bowl. Shape the dough into 1-1/2 tablespoon balls and roll in the flaked almonds. Place on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten the cookie slightly with the palm of your hand and then make an indentation in the center of the cookie with your thumb or the end of a wooden spoon.

Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and reshape the thumbprint, if necessary. 

Fill the indentations with cherry jam. Bake for an additional 6 minutes, removing from the oven when golden around the edges. Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a wire rack.

Recipe from The Sugar Hit