This recipe is a Christmas tradition in my family. Every December my mom would begin Christmas cookie production. She’d store stacks of Tupperware containers in the cool garage filled to the brim with holiday treats such as peanut butter balls, and best of all, what we call bird’s nest cookies! They’re known by many names- thimble cookies and thumbprint cookies, but the general idea is the same. A sweet buttery ball of shortbread is rolled in nuts or coconut and dented with a finger or a thimble (or the end of a spoon in my case). Then they’re baked and the “nests” are filled with fruit jelly.
If you’ve never had a bird’s nest cookie it might sound kinda strange, but I promise they’re delightful! My little sister who doesn’t care much for jam, took one bite and with wide eyes declared the cookie “delicious”! She ate half a dozen. We use my mom’s homemade strawberry jam which is the best I’ve ever had. Someday I’ll have to make that on my own!
It’s always fun to have recipes that have been passed down through the family. This one came from my grandmother (mom’s mom) who died before I was born and so it has a special place in our hearts and our kitchen.
Bird’s Nest Cookies (Thumbprint or Thimble Cookies)
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups salted butter (if you use unsalted be sure to add about 1/2 tsp. salt)
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
3 eggs, separated
jam or jelly of your choice (I used raspberry and strawberry)
sweetened dried coconut flakes
walnuts, finely chopped
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter with an electric mixer. Add the sugar gradually and mix well. Lightly whisk the egg yolks then add them to the bowl with the vanilla and flour,mixing until thoroughly combined. Shape into walnut-sized balls.
3. Place egg whites in a shallow bowl and lightly whisk. Place nuts and coconut in separate bowls. First roll the balls of dough in the egg whites and then in either the nuts or coconut to coat. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet and dent in the center with a thimble or finger.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Quickly remove from the oven and re-dent the tops of the cookies. Return the cookies to the oven and continue cooking for about 8 minutes, until golden. Remove from the oven to cool on a wire rack. Fill the centers with jam or jelly while still hot. Once cooled, store in an airtight container.
NOTE: If using coconut, make sure the oven rack is in the middle of the oven and watch the cookies closely at the end of cooking to prevent the coconut from burning.
Makes 40-60 cookies, depending on size.
(My mother’s recipe.)
This is very similar to my mom’s recipe – I am 100% sure she collected this recipe from somewhere in the late 60s or 70s. She always called them “Birds’ nest” cookies and not thumbprints. She made them every single year. I miss her so much. Thanks for sharing your recipe! <3
I’ve been making something similar, still looking to find the recipe used by us in the late ’60’s thru late ’70’s. Mom’s recipe also used the 2-part method of indenting, baking, re-indenting, and finish baking like you. I don’t remember if we filled them and THEN did the final bake or if we waited. We preferred the coconut over the nuts–my dad had dentures and the coconut version was easier on him!
As for jelly/jam, we found the best combo was red & green MARASCHINO CHERRIES! We cut them in half and put the rounded end facing up. Also, we did some with Hershey’s Kisses! They melted slightly when inserted as the cookies came out of the oven–the texture on the outside of the Kisses weren’t very nice when they were inserted before the cookies had their final bake, so we waited. I will try your recipe this week! I stocked up on Sugar-Free Blackberry, Orange Marmalade, and Pineapple Preserves so will try them too!
BIRD NESTS! Oh, no one knew what I was talking about when I brought them up in conversation. My great great aunt made these cookies every year. It was a family tradition. Tip: soak maraschino cherries in your favorite alcohol (smith brothers is what we use) for a good month or so. Make cookies tiny as a walnut. It is delicious.
We also make boozy apricot jam with dried apricots..
I tried adding peanut butter to cookie dough once and used chopped peanuts for outside. Fill top with chocolate. This was too rich in my opinion. You might enjoy it.
Oh, thank you for sharing this recipe and bringing back memories.
Sorry! I meant to also say that the pecans were lovely on top these thimble cookies! I did candy nuts for the first time! these cookies are delicate and melt in your mouth!
My very first time ever doing candied pecans or any other nut. They are sweet and salty and literally melting in my mouth! Delicious.
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I LOVE thumbprint cookies, and they are also a holiday tradition. I just started making homemade strawberry freezer jam last year, and cannot wait to try these made with that jam! If you make the jam on the Sure-Gel package- that’s it- so easy- no boiling of jars, which is scary to me.
I just found your blog, and love it! Your baby is lovely, your hubby cute, you are beautiful, and what precious family you make! I was just reminiscing with my hubby that 20 years ago, we were planning on trying for our first baby in a couple months! And on Halloween, we found out we were expecting! Our son Austin is 19, and starting his second year of college now, our daughter, Kristen, is a junior in high school. We are so blessed, they are wonderful people, kind, honest, and great students. Very smart! Such a happy life. It has gone so fast, so cherish each moment, even the long nights with sick kids have something you will look back on and tell stories about. Take pictures and videos, of even everyday little things. And read to your babies and kids a lot- that is the #1 key to success, in our opinions, in school.
Sorry for all of that, I am just so happy for you, and see a bit of us in you. Enjoy! Thanks for sharing your recipes and a your family!
Nancy
nancy- thank you so much for taking the time to comment and share that with me! having a newborn is definitely scary and challenging but you’ve helped me have better perspective- i definitely will miss these times- the good and the bad! i hope you come back often and find more recipes to try (and hopefully i’ll be cooking and posting again regularly soon). wish you the best