Cacao thumbprint cookies with Christmas jam
Ahh, it’s that time of year again, the most wonderful time of the year! I don’t know about you, but growing up, we kept the tradition of baking Christmas cookies. My mom would set aside a weekend early in December to get all of her baking done, and I of course would help! She still bakes the same family recipe specialties every year – delectabites, spritz cookies, Italian pizelles and her most famous apricot-coconut rugalach. When I got old enough to bake myself, I started adding in a few new treats into the mix, like gingerbread biscotti and cranberry-pistachio biscotti, to name a couple. There’s just something magical about listening to Christmas music all the while filling the house with baked sugar and floury sweetness. It just smells like Christmas! Add a crackling, orange blaze in the fireplace and you’ve got instant comfort perfection.
This year, I’m making something slightly different. Thumbprint cookies. These are traditional Christmas-y cookies I didn’t grow up eating, so I thought it would be nice to bake a batch this year for a little change.
Again, Hubby and I have been sipping away at our cacao brew, so we always have lots of leftover brewed nibs in the fridge. I wanted to use these in my holiday baking this year, so I opted to use them in my cookies. If you are not familiar with or don’t have brewed cacao, you can substitute unsweetened, desiccated coconut and cocoa powder mixed with coconut oil to achieve a similar taste, although the texture won’t be quite the same. What really makes these cookies though, or any thumbprint cookie truthfully, is the jam that goes in the center. I have so many favorite jams from my dear friend Nicole at Neat Nick Preserves, but this extra-special, made-only-once-a-year jam could not be more festive. The Amish Christmas jam is a unique Christmas-y compote of cranberries, strawberries, orange zest, cinnamon, and cloves. If ever Yankee Candle made an Amish Christmas Jam candle, I could enjoy its lavish aroma year round!
The sweet, earthy warmth in the jam balances out the bittersweet cacao cookie and makes for one perfect bite. I use almond flour and cassava flour for a tender crumb, and golden coconut sugar for that brown-sugary richness. In keeping with tradition for a real “thumbprint” cookie, I gently press my thumb into the center of the cookie dough balls to create a well for the all that sticky, delicious jam. And you don’t even need too much jam, just about ½ teaspoon per cookie. The key to these cookies is allowing them to completely cool before removing them from their cookie sheets and plating them up, as they continue to crisp up as they cool.
My cacao thumbprint cookies are completely vegan and grain-free, so they’re safe for any last-minute guests. I love serving these treats with hot tea or rich hot cocoa. The cookies will stay well in an air-tight container for up to two weeks, but they also freeze well if you want to keep some a special indulgence after the new year!
Cacao thumbprint cookies with Christmas jam
(makes 36-38 cookies)
3 ½ cups leftover brewed cacao nibs***
1 cup golden coconut sugar
1 cup almond flour
1 cup cassava flour
1/3 cup coconut oil
1 jar Neat Nick Preserves Amish Christmas Jam
***Substitute 3 cups unsweetened, desiccated coconut and ½- ¾ cup cocoa powder with ¼ cup melted coconut oil. The mixture should be moist, so you may need to add more coconut oil if it looks too dry. Note this substitution will achieve a softer, crumblier cookie base than if using the leftover brewed cacao nibs.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Mix the cacao nibs, coconut sugar, almond flour, cassava flour, and coconut oil together in a large mixing bowl until thoroughly combined. Scoop out 1 heaping tablespoon portions of the dough and roll into balls. Line up the dough balls onto an un-greased cookie sheet with about ½ inch in between each one. Slightly flatten each dough ball and then gently make an indentation in the center with your to create a vessel for the jam. Be careful not to press too hard so as to split the dough ball in half. Spoon a heaping ½ teaspoon portion of the jam into the center divots of each cookie. Bake at 350 F for about 35 minutes or until the jam begins to bubble and the cookies have begun to slightly crisp on the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to completely cool before removing from the cookie trays – the cookies will harden and crisp as they cool. The cookies can be stored in an air-tight container for up to two weeks or keep them in the freezer for longer!