Black Forest Thumbprints
18
- Prep Time30 mins
- Total Time1 hr 45 mins
- Makes16 cookies
Text and recipe by Camilla Wynne, produced by Aimee Nishitoba, photography by Carmen Cheung, food styling by Eshun Mott, prop styling by Madeleine Johari.
These delicious cookies from recipe developer Camilla Wynne have all the flavours of Black Forest cake—chocolate, cherry, kirsch and vanilla—in a hand-held treat.
Ingredients
2/3 cup (75 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
7 tbsp (54 g) icing sugar
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (21 g) black cocoa powder
2 tbsp finely chopped dried cherries
Filling
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp icing sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped out
3 tbsp 35% cream, at room temperature
1 tsp kirsch
3 tbsp cherry jam
Instructions
Position rack in centre of oven, then preheat to 300F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment.
Combine 2⁄3 cup butter with 7 tbsp icing sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high until pale and silky. Sift in flour and cocoa powder. Stir on low until just combined. Fold in dried cherries.
Scoop dough into a piping bag fitted with a medium French tip. Pipe 3-in.-wide circles onto baking sheet, then use a wet finger to make a divot in the centre of each circle. Bake until set, 18 to 20 min. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool, about 1 hr.
Filling: Whisk 3⁄4 cup plus 2 tbsp icing sugar with 1⁄4 cup butter and vanilla seeds in a medium bowl until smooth. Gradually whisk in cream, then kirsch. Continue whisking until mixture holds firm peaks. Scrape into a piping bag fitted with a large plain tip. Pipe a mound of filling in the divot of each cookie, then top each with 1⁄2 tsp jam.
Kitchen tip
For an extra-big and freezable batch, double the recipe and pipe the cookies slightly smaller for a larger yield.
Storage tip
These are best enjoyed the day they are made, but will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Freeze unfilled baked cookies in an airtight container between sheets of wax paper for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temp before filling.
Find more make-ahead holiday cookies in this delicious collection.
Camilla Wynne is a Toronto-based cookbook author, writer and recipe developer. Her most recent cookbook is Nature's Candy.