The Measuring Spoon Trick That Makes Thumbprint Cookies Easy

Thumbprint cookies are an easy way to elevate buttery shortbread with fruity flavor. With only a few key ingredients like flour, butter, and sugar, shortbread is simple to make, and pressing an indent into the top of each cookie to make room for jam doesn't require too much extra effort. In fact, Mashed recipe developer Jessica Morone made her Swedish thumbprint cookies recipe even easier with a teaspoon trick that will help you create the "thumbprint."

Morone likes using the curved shape of ¼ teaspoon to create the indent in the center of the cookie. The teaspoon keeps your thumb clean while making each indent more uniform and circular. Thumbprint cookies are traditionally small, so ¼ teaspoon allows for a good jam-to-cookie ratio. The thumbprint can be pressed into the cookies when they're still rolled into balls — the pressure from the imprint will help flatten the cookies a bit while preserving some of their rounded shape for a tall, crumbly cookie. From making the dough to shaping and filling, thumbprint cookies can come together in practically no time.

Those who like extra jam in their cookies or making their cookies larger than normal can still utilize Jessica Morone's trick by opting for a larger measuring spoon. After making your "thumbprint," your cookies can be filled and baked. The one challenge Morone foresees with this easy recipe is nailing the correct amount of filling. She told Mashed, "The only complicated part is filling the cookies with jam so that there is enough in the cookie, but not so much that it overflows. I usually pipe in the jam so that they are filled to slightly lower than the top of the cookie."

Morone's recipe is inspired by a classic Swedish treat. "...This recipe is pretty similar to the traditional Swedish recipe for hallongrotta, which translates to 'raspberry cave' and references the jam that is traditionally used to fill these cookies," she explained. Raspberry jam makes a great filling because it provides a subtle tartness while lending its sweet berry flavor. Even so, Morone has also made these cookies with strawberry jam and encourages bakers to fill the teaspoon cave with any jam they like — Padma Lakshmi's thumbprint cookies, for example, are Cuban-inspired and filled with guava jam. But you don't need to fill thumbprint cookies with jam — try a chocolate, caramel, or lemon curd filling. Use this teaspoon hack with these thumbprint cookies during the next holiday season, for a birthday, or whenever you get the urge to bake.