Reviewed: Nov. 3, 2009

I have been using this recipe for about 3 years. They are always a big hit. I end up getting a lot of cookies out of the recipe so I drop them off to very excited family. I love to do these with red raspberry jam and apricot and apricot pineapple I make different flavor batches. I did try with some strawberry one time and did not like it at all. I do increase the lemon juice and zest about 2.5-3 Tablespoons of each. Also these are pretty labor intensive so I chill the dough overnight and make the cookies the next day. Also do not over work your dough and keep an eye on the first batch sometimes mine are done at about 13 minutes. I dust with powder sugar after they cool a bit. And don't try them straigt out of the oven I always can't wait and burn myself b/c the jam is so hot!! Happy baking!!

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LuVBellBoyzX4

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Oct. 31, 2009

I have to agree with several of the other reviewers on here. The cookie is oddly fluffy and very bland. I even took into consideration that other people had said the cookie was bland and went heavy on the lemon zest. Still it was quite bland. I'll try to make a larger indent in the rest of the batch so that I can add more apricot jam, maybe that will help.

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SPROCKETJONES

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Reviewed: Sep. 20, 2009

Its my favorite of all thumbprint recipes

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CNOVICKY

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Reviewed: May 23, 2009

Delicious cookies. The cream cheese makes the dough soft and stay soft after baking. The sweetness is subtle and the lemon/jam tartness is lovely with the light taste of the cream cheese. As many reviewers have said, this is a subtle cookie, not a screemingly sweet bold cookie. The lemon zest and apricot preserves are the major flavorings of this cookie. Use good quality flour, zest your lemon properly (avoid the pith), and use good quality jam and you won't be disappointed. Additions that I've found work are using bit of almond extract with raspberry jam. A warning about the dough: as you finish the dough and roll them for the baking sheet, the dough will look fluffy and "too soft". Resist the urge to add more flour. The dough is perfect.

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Price

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 18, 2009

One of our favorite cookies. Make it with rhubarb strawberry jam too -- yum!

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scaggla

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Reviewed: Mar. 13, 2009

I made these for the holidays and they were a huge hit! I used strawberry, as well as apricot; it was a great flavor combination.

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twitte1

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Reviewed: Feb. 7, 2009

I made these for Christmas and they were fabulous. My husband and teenage sons loved them. The best cookies we had this year!

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likes2cook

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Cape Girardeau, Missouri, USA

Living In: Overland Park, Kansas, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 31, 2009

These are pretty good. I do like the flavor of them and I LOVE thumbprint cookies, but they do take a lot of effort and time. For that reason I don't make them that often, which is probably good for my health. ;o) I like the Almond and Raspberry Thumbprints on here a bit better but it's a good way to use up some cream cheese, and the apricot preserves are awesome. Apricot is one of my favorite fruit! I made the dough a few days ago then made them today. I rolled the dough into balls first, placing them on a pan so I would have them ready every time I pulled a batch out of the oven. Although sometimes I use a teaspoon to make the print, I used my thumb today. Be careful not to overfill your thumbprints or they will overflow and make a big mess. I put my preserves into a ziploc bag, then cut an opening in the corner so I can pipe it into the print. It's much less messy that way! 15 minutes were perfect for mine. thanks for the recipe!

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pomplemousse

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Pendleton, Oregon, USA

Living In: Dumfries, Virginia, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 4, 2009

Though I did not use apricot jam, these were the best cookies I have had in a long time. I used Strawberry jam instead. I usually make cookies for the family, and do not eat them myself. This time, I ate them all:)

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Jen Cantrell

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Reviewed: Jan. 1, 2009

I had really high hopes for these, but they didn't come out well as I had hoped. I made them for the holidays and followed the recipe exactly as stated. They ended up kind of too heavy and doughy, not crisp on the bottoms. I guess the best way to describe then was that they were just too soft. I'd also probably make smaller balls...a tablespoon per cookie seemed like too much. Many guests said they liked them, although there were a lot left over, which tells me something! The fresh lemon juice and peel was a nice addition, though.

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penny p.

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: New York, New York, USA

Living In: Seattle, Washington, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 29, 2008

these were okay, dry, and not much flavor

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nelliebellie

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Reviewed: Dec. 28, 2008

I am giving this a 5 star rating based upon reactions from other people. I wasn't really a fan of these cookies but when I gave them out for Christmas everyone loved them. I had to print the recipe out for a few of them! I didn't have Apricot Jam so I used Cherry Preserves and substituted vanilla for the lemon juice and zest.

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chorto78

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 26, 2008

I was disappointed in this recipe after reading all of the good reviews. I made the cookies as directed-no changes- and found them to be fairly bland. Not sure what the big deal was on the reviews. The raw dough was the best part about these. Won't be making these again. On another note, using the sandwich bag to fill them worked great, and I will be using that method on a different thumbprint recipe.

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LITTLE_BUTTERBEAN

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Reviewed: Dec. 23, 2008

These are amazingly bland and boring, a waste of resources, don't bother

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Mariet

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Reviewed: Dec. 22, 2008

First of all, I don't cook much, and this recipe was easy enough for me to handle. Secondly, I made a few small changes, based on ideas of my own and other reviews, and I think they came out great! As someone else mentioned, I used 2 packages of cream cheese. I also used 2 sticks of salted and 1 stick of unsalted butter. Rather than white flour, I used whole wheat, and I also added about a teaspoon of nutmeg to the dough. Rather than any kind of preserves for filling, I used a very simple cranberry jelly recipe (1 bag cranberries + 12 oz. water + 1/3 cup brown sugar -- boil water and sugar until dissolved, add cranberries and stir until all are burst and the skins come off). The end result is subtle and hearty (thanks, mainly, to the whole wheat flour). The mildly-sweet cookies offset the tartness of the cranberry nicely. Thanks for this great recipe!!

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Mandi

Cooking Level: Beginning

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Reviewed: Dec. 22, 2008

I don't like sugar cookies so I decided to try these. They are wonderful. My hubby who doesn't have a sweet tooth ate 15 for breakfast. Made during Christmas these look wonderful on a tray. Make with several different kind of preserves for a festive look and taste. Thanks for the great recipe

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claytonsgirl

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Cross City, Florida, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 21, 2008

THESE ARE THE BEST THINGS EVER, THE LEMON REALLY MADE THEM AND I USED RASPBERRY, BLACKBERRY AND GUAVA PRESERVES MY FAVORITES

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Bridget

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

Living In: Winter Haven, Florida, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 16, 2008

It was a good recipe but a little to fussy to make for my taste.

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peridotlily

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Reviewed: Dec. 15, 2008

Love the fluffy texture of this cookie! It is also very tasty and melts in your mouth. I like that it is not very sweet, however, I do plan on adding a small amount more of sugar on the next batch. Not a lot more... just a little. Agree that cold dough makes for the nicest texture for handling and also for the finished product.

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Annie

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Reviewed: Dec. 15, 2008

Instead of just using apricot preserves, I mix them up...sometimes using strawberry or blackberry. The strawberry ones diappear like crazy! This year I am trying peach! Soooo simple to make and they look GREAT on holiday trays! Yum!

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