Lemon Thumbprint Cookies

These Lemon Thumbprint Cookies are the perfect holiday cookies. Cookie dough balls are coated in walnuts then filled with lemon curd. This citrusy twist on an old fashioned cookie is incredibly delicious!

Thumbprint cookies are one of my favorite cookies to make and to eat. They’re so much fun to make and so pretty. I love the fact that you can fill them with your favorite jelly, but this time I went with a lemon curd filling.

I actually made my own lemon curd, but the store bought kind works just as well.

These lemon thumbprint cookies truly are for the lemon lovers out there, there’s lemon in the cookie and lots of lemon in the lemon curd, so definitely lemony! They’re also not a very sweet cookie so you can snack away on these by the handful without getting that all too familiar sugar crash.

What Are Thumbprint Cookies

Thumbprint cookies are known as Hallongrotta which is a Swedish pastry. Translated it means “Raspberry Cave“. Thumbprint cookies are really old fashioned but a classic in my book. I decided that these should be lemon caves today, it’s a bright and delicious twist on a classic.

Ingredients

Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.

• Wet ingredients – Unsalted butter, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and eggs.
• Pecans – Ground pecans to form a perfectly nutty flavor and binder in our crust.
• Flour – All purpose flour.
• Salt – All of our baked goods need seasoning! No ifs ands or butts about it.
• Lemon curd – I used my own homemade lemon curd but you can use store bought as well.

Do I Have To Use Pecans?

Well you certainly don’t if you don’t want to! You can use any type of nuts that you like best in this recipe. The nuts can be left out entirely. Just skip the egg white and pecan part in step 5 detailed below.

How To Make Lemon Thumbprint Cookies

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Place the ground pecans in a shallow plate.
2. Combine the wet ingredients: Add the butter, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla extract to the bowl of your mixer, and beat on medium using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, salt and continue beating until fully incorporated.
3. Incorporate the flour: Add the flour and continue mixing on low until fully incorporated.
4. Assemble the dough: Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, then roll them through the egg white, then through the ground pecans. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about an 2 inches in between them. Using your thumb press little wells into the centre of each cookie, sometimes I also use the bottom of a cork screw.
5. Bake the cookies for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the sheets for about 5 minutes after which you can transfer them to a wire rack to allow them to cool completely.
6. Finish the cookies: Place a small dollop of the lemon curd into the centre of each cookie.

How To Make Your Own Lemon Curd

I mean I always say home made is best don’t I? So why not test that theory out with this recipe.

How To Best Zest A Lemon

If you’ve never really zested a lemon before, don’t fret it’s super easy! But there is a certain trick to it so let’s get into it.

1. Prepare the lemon: If you’re not using organic lemons, I recommend washing them in warm water using a clean sponge. Warm water melts the wax layer that protects the fruit and dissolves any chemicals with which it has been sprinkled.
2. Grate the lemon: Wipe the lemons well after they have been washed and grate them on the smallest holes of your grater. You must be careful that the white and bitter part of the shell is not grated so change where you are zesting often. If you look at the lemon and see you have hit any white parts you’ve zested too far.

Storing Leftovers

Store leftovers cookies in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to a week.

Freezer

To freeze them, store them in an airtight container for up to a month.

Craving More Lemon? Try These Delicious Recipes

• Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
• Old Fashioned Lemon Bread
• Lemon Blueberry Scones
• Lemon Yogurt Cake
• Strawberry Lemon Bundt Cake
• Lemon Poppy Seed Bread With Lemon Icing
• Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Loaf
• The Best Lemon Bars

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

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4.60 from 10 votes

Lemon Thumbprint Cookies

Prep 20 minutes

Cook 15 minutes

Total 35 minutes

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These Lemon Thumbprint Cookies are the perfect holiday cookies. Cookie dough balls are coated in walnuts then filled with lemon curd. This citrusy twist on an old fashioned cookie is incredibly delicious!

US CustomaryMetric

36

Ingredients

• ▢ 8 tablespoon butter ((1 stick) unsalted, at room temperature)
• ▢ 1/2 cup sugar
• ▢ 2 teaspoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
• ▢ zest of one lemon
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 egg white (beaten)
• ▢ 4 ounce pecans (ground)
• ▢ 1/4 cup lemon curd

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Place the ground pecans in a shallow plate.
• Add the butter, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla extract to the bowl of your mixer, and beat on medium using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
• Add the eggs, salt and continue beating until fully incorporated. 
• Add the flour and continue mixing on low until fully incorporated.
• Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, then roll them through the egg white, then through the ground pecans. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about an 2 inches in between them. Using your thumb press little wells into the center of each cookie, sometimes I also use the bottom of a cork screw.
• Bake the cookies for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the sheets for about 5 minutes after which you can transfer them to a wire rack to allow them to cool completely.
• Place a small dollop of the lemon curd into the center of each cookie. 

Equipment

• Aluminum Baking Sheet (2 pack)
• Parchment Paper
• KitchenAid Classic 4.5 Quart Stand Mixer

Notes

1. You can use any type of buts that you like best in this recipe.
2. The nuts can be left out entirely. Just skip the egg white and pecan part in step 5.
3. Store leftovers cookies in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to a week.
4. To freeze them, store them in an airtight container for up to a month.
5. Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1gCalories: 96kcal (5%)Carbohydrates: 11g (4%)Protein: 2g (4%)Fat: 5g (8%)Saturated Fat: 2g (13%)Cholesterol: 16mg (5%)Sodium: 26mg (1%)Potassium: 27mg (1%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 4g (4%)Vitamin A: 94IU (2%)Vitamin C: 1mg (1%)Calcium: 6mg (1%)Iron: 1mg (6%)

© Author Joanna Cismaru

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.