Double Chocolate Thumbprints Cookies

Double Chocolate Thumbprints

I spotted these beauties in Fine Cooking, and mentioned baking up a batch of chocolate thumbprints to the hubby. I made the mistake of letting him know that I wanted to replace the chocolate ganache filling with Caramel Kisses.

I got what my friend, Patti, calls the “hamster look” of disappointment. Kind of a subtle pout. OK, OK, I could certainly make some with ganache. And my reward was his reaction after taking his first bite. He even suggested adding these to the tried and true cookies I give out to my friends each holiday.

Cookies for the Dorm

Nick was home for Thanksgiving break when I made these and I promised him the majority of these double chocolate thumbprints to share with his friends in the dorm. He, like me, adores caramel and gave me two thumbs up after his taste test. Trust me, these are amazing!

You can add any flavored Kiss you’d like, a mini-Reese’s, or just plain ganache. Just make sure to let the cookies cool a few minutes before inserting the candy.

Welcome to Christmas Week, a multi-blogger event co-hosted by Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina. Each day we will be celebrating a new holiday baking theme where each blogger makes a dish they love. We hope you enjoy this fabulous event. Tune in each day starting Monday, December 3rd and ending Friday, December 7th. If all goes as planned, I may be sharing two recipes some days this week…so I can keep up with Chocolate Party, Tuesdays with Dorie and French Fridays with Dorie! I hope you’ll check out each and every post.

Today’s theme for Christmas Week is “Cookies and Bars”. Make sure you visit all the participating bloggers today to see what special dish they whipped up for you.

• Mice Cookies from Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic
• Biscoff Blossoms from Jen of Juanita’s Cocina
• Double Chocolate Thumbprints from Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Snickerdoodles Snowballs from Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
• Cranberry Pistachio Christmas Biscotti from Isabelle of Crumb
• Mint Chocolate Pudding Cookies from Erin of Dinners, Dishes and Desserts
• Hot Cocoa Blossoms from Erin of Spiffy Cookie
• Jam Thumbprints from Ramona of Curry and Comfort
• Cranberry Sauce Brownies from Chung-Ah of Damn Delicious

Tip of the Day: I have trouble with my cookie scoop/disher not releasing the dough cleanly after a few uses. When spraying with Pam does not work, I use my hot water dispenser to rinse and heat up the gadget, allowing for rounder, more consistent sized balls of dough.

Yield: 5 dozen

Double Chocolate Thumbprints

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Chocolate laden cookies adapted from Fine Cooking

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

Cookie dough

• 1 1/3 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 stick (4 ounces) butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly

For the chocolate filling:

• 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (1/2 cup)
• 4 tablespoons butter, cut into 3 pieces
• M and M's, optional garnish
• Or use Caramel or Plain Hershey's Kisses instead of M and M's

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line cookie sheets with parchment and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
3. Using a mixer, beat the butter, sugar, and cocoa powder on medium speed until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until blended after each addition, then mix in vanilla. Add the cooled, melted chocolate and mix till combined, then add flour mixture. Mix just till incorporated.
4. Place tablespoons of dough about 1-1/2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Bake till the cookies are puffed and crackled, about 8-10 minutes.
5. When the cookies are just out of the oven, and you plan to use the ganache filling, use the rounded side of a half-teaspoon measuring spoon, make a deep well in the center of each cookie. Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for 4-5 minutes before moving to a rack to finish cooling.
6. *If using Kisses, cool cookies 4-5 minutes, then press unwrapped Kiss into center of each cookie.
7. To make the filling, melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave, stirring with a rubber spatula until smooth. Set aside until cool and slightly thickened.
8. Spoon the chocolate mixture into the wells of the cooled cookies. Place an M and M in the center of the ganache, if desired. Set aside until the chocolate firms up, about 1 hour.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

30

Serving Size:

1 cookie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 134 Total Fat: 5g Saturated Fat: 3g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 2g Cholesterol: 23mg Sodium: 82mg Carbohydrates: 21g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 1g Sugar: 16g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 2g