Rosemary & White Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
It’s no secret that I love herbs in baked goods and that rosemary may very well be my favorite one to use – unless you’re new here and if so thank you, welcome, and prepare for your tastebuds to be absolutely rocked. From my Rosemary & White Chocolate Scones to my Mushroom & Rosemary Galette, it is just one of the best herbs to complement a bake. Trust me. Also, rosemary and white chocolate are simply the best of friends.
Thumbprint cookies have to be one of my favorites. You’re telling me I get a cookie filled with a dent of ooey gooey chocolate (or jam or whatever you’re filling your thumbprint with)?? Sign me up. I want all those delicious flavors and textures in every bite.Â
These thumbprints are made up of a rosemary shortbread cookie base, for that soft and crumbly chew, rolled in sugar, and filled with an easy, two-ingredient white chocolate ganache. The perfect bite to fill your cookie jar or complete a holiday spread.
Be sure to review and comment below if you try this recipe and love it!
ROSEMARY THUMBPRINT COOKIES
Thumbprint cookies are often made with a buttery dough, firm enough to hold an indentation but soft enough to melt in your mouth, and these cookies are no different. These rosemary thumbprint cookies are made from The Best Rosemary Shortbread but rolled into balls and pressed in the center to form craters to be filled with a delicious white chocolate ganache. Because, as mentioned above, rosemary and white chocolate are flavor best friends! Since this is a shortbread dough, the raw dough itself will feel crumbly as you work with it but have no fear! As you press and form these cookies, the dough will soften and come together. The white chocolate ganache filling is simply two ingredients and once poured into each delicious thumbprint, sets to a perfectly creamy, fudgy center.
What is ganache? A fancy-sounding word for something so simple (and delicious). Basically, ganache, made up of two ingredients: chocolate and cream, is a thicker, runnier chocolate that will set without becoming hard. This makes it perfect for filling cookies, icing cakes, or even popping in the fridge to cool before beating with a whisk to make a whipped chocolate ganache perfect for topping pies or filling pavlovas.
INGREDIENTS
- Granulated Sugar – Adds a touch of sweetness inside these cookies and a little texture when each cookie ball is rolled in sugar before baking.
- Unsalted butter – Your only “wet” ingredient and what makes them simply melt in your mouth.
- Flour – Adding both texture and structure, the flour is what holds these cookies together.
- Cornstarch – Slightly different than many shortbread recipes, by swapping in a little cornstarch your cookie will have a slight chew to it compared to only flour.
- Salt – Just a little goes a long way to amplify those rosemary flavors.
- Fresh Rosemary – The key being “fresh.” The oils from the herb add flavor and essence to the cookies that you won’t get from the dried variety. While you can make this recipe with dried rosemary – still be sure to chop the leaves up fine (yes, more than how it comes in the jar) – the rosemary flavor won’t be as pronounced.
- White Chocolate – I prefer using chocolate bars over chips when making ganache, as they’re easy enough to chop into smaller bits and melt more smoothly, but chips will do if that’s what you have!
- Heavy Cream – Offers both a smooth richness and soft bite, in the center of these cookies
Your rosemary should be chopped fine! This is the time to have a sharp knife or mini food processor to really chop that rosemary into bits. You don’t want spiky rosemary bites in your cookies.
HOW TO MAKE ROSEMARY & WHITE CHOCOLATE THUMBPRINT COOKIES
One of my favorite parts of this recipe (besides the flavors) is that it comes together easily and makes a bundle. You’ll start by making your cookies. Grab a bowl and a mixer and cream together 1/2 cup of sugar with your room temperature butter, beating for two minutes on a medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. This is where room temperature butter is key, for both blending with the sugar and incorporating air into the dough.
Grab another bowl and whisk together your flour, cornstarch, salt, and finely chopped rosemary. Pour those dry ingredients into your butter-sugar mixture and stir together with a spatula until just combined. Your dough will 100% be dry and crumbly at this stage, don’t panic! Once it’s crumbly, use your hands to press your dough together, this will soften the butter and help it incorporate with the flour and cornstarch, making for a more pliable dough. Cover your bowl tightly and place it in the fridge for 20 minutes, allowing your flavors to meld, your flour and butter to mingle (and absorb), and your butter to re-firm ahead of baking.
Preheat your oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove your dough from the fridge, scoop out two tablespoons of dough at a time, and roll it into a ball. The dough will still be on the dry side so you may need to compress it with your hands a little as you form your balls. Roll your balls in the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and place on your baking tray an inch apart. Once your dough balls are formed and on your tray, use your thumb to press an indent into the center of each cookie, be careful not to push all the way through. Again, because this is a dry dough it will likely crack a bit as you make your indent, just use your fingers to press the edges back together
Bake for 15-16 minutes. At the halfway mark, remove your cookies from the oven and use a teaspoon to re-press in the indent as it will have likely puffed up a bit as they bake. Rotate your tray and place the cookies back in the oven for the remainder of their baking time. They will still be pale but the bottoms will be lightly golden. You want your shortbread to have a lovely chew in the middle so don’t overbake these!
Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, it’s time to prepare your white chocolate ganache! Chop your white chocolate into small pieces and place in an even layer in a heat-proof bowl. Then, in a small pot, add your heavy cream and place over medium heat. Once the liquid begins to steam and has a few bubbles around the edge, immediately pour over your chopped white chocolate. Cover the bowl with a lid or plate and let it sit for 4 minutes before removing the lid and whisking until smooth.
Spoon a little of your ganache into each thumbprint and allow it to set for at least an hour. This will help firm up your ganache so it’s soft but not running out of the cookie as you bite into it!
3 reasons you’ll love these thumbprint cookies
TIPS & VARIATIONS
- Chop your fresh rosemary super fine! I love rosemary but not spikes, and I don’t want to bite into one in my cookies. This will also make for even better flavor distribution throughout your cookies.
- This is a dry dough so don’t be alarmed if it seems a little crumbly. Simply press together to form the dough and then roll and press together to form balls.
- When you turn the tray halfway during the baking, use a teaspoon to re-press down on the indent (which will likely have puffed up a little as it baked) before returning to the oven for the rest of the cooking time. You want a nice cavity for all that delicious ganache!
- Once poured into each baked thumbprint cookie, allow your ganache to set for at least an hour. Obviously, you can throw back a few beforehand but your ganache will run out of the cookie. Giving it time to set will give it a more fudgy consistency that holds when you bite into the cookie.
MAKING AHEAD & STORING
The dough for these cookies will keep wrapped in the fridge for 1-2 days. For ease when you are ready to bake, I would recommend shaping your thumbprint cookies ahead of placing the dough in the fridge, so they are ready to bake as soon as you are. You can also make the ganache in advance and store it in the fridge. When ready to fill your baked cookies, place your ganache in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 10-second intervals, stirring in between, until runny, before filling your cookies and allowing the ganache to set as instructed below.
These baked cookies can be kept in an airtight container for up to two days at room temperature or one week in the fridge. You can also freeze them filled, for 1-2 months.
MORE WHITE CHOCOLATE RECIPES
Big white chocolate fan over here so if you are too, try my Rosemary & White Chocolate Buttermilk Scones or my Rosemary Madeleines with a White Chocolate Shell (I know, I know but I love the flavor combo!). For an easy single-serve snack, grab a pot and make this Black & White Popcorn (inspired by one of my favorite travel snacks!).
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Mixer
- Spoons
- Small pot
- Mixing Bowls
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Spatula
Ingredients
- ½ cup sugar
- 14 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ¾ cups flour
- ½ cup cornstarch
- ¼ tsp salt
- 5 tbsp fresh rosemary finely chopped
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup white chocolate chopped
- ¼ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- For your cookies, in a bowl, cream together ½ cup of sugar and your room-temperature butter with a mixer. Beat for 2 minutes on a medium speed until light and fluffy
- In a separate bowl, whisk together your flour, cornstarch, salt, and chopped rosemary
- Pour your dry ingredients into your butter mixture and stir together with a spatula until just combined. Your dough will be dry and crumbly, have no fear! Once combined but crumbly, use your hands to press your dough together. Cover your bowl and pop in the fridge for 20 minutes to let the flavors meld and the flour to absorb into the dough
- Preheat your oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Once set, roll 2 tablespoons of dough at a time into a ball – compressing as needed to form – roll in a bowl with your remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar, and place on a cookie sheet about an inch apart. Once your dough is rolled, use your thumb to press an indent into the center of each cookie, be careful not to push all the way through. Because this is a dry dough, it will likely crack a bit as your make your indent, just use your fingers to press the edges back together
- Bake for 15-16 minutes. At the halfway mark, remove your cookies from the oven and use a teaspoon to re-press in the indent as it will have likely puffed up a bit as they baked. Rotate your tray and place the cookies back in the oven for the remainder of their baking time. They will still be pale but the bottoms will be lightly golden. You want your shortbread to have a lovely chew in the middle so don’t overbake these!
- Cool on a wire rack completely
- Once your cookies are cool, prep your white chocolate ganache by chopping your white chocolate into small pieces and place in an even layer in a heat-proof bowl. In a small pot, add your heavy cream and place over medium heat. Once the liquid begins to steam and has a few bubbles around the edge, immediately pour over your chopped white chocolate. Cover the bowl with a lid or plate and let sit for 4 minutes before removing the lid and whisking until smooth
- Spoon a little bit of ganache into each thumbprint. Allow the ganache to set in your thumbprints for at least an hour
- Enjoy!
super yummy but I feel like a bit too rosemary-y? could use maybe some vanilla paste or something of the like in my very humble opinion 🙂
Thanks jordie! So glad you liked them, I love the rosemary flavor but you’re welcome to cut down a smidge if you prefer a little less.
absolutely love these! they melt in your mouth and the rosemary with the white chocolate is so good
my favorite combo! so glad you love these
The perfect Christmas cookie for people who don’t like things too sweet! My kids weren’t as interested but that meant there were more cookies for my husband and me 🙂
Always in for more cookies! Glad they were perfect for you holidays!