Description

Eggnog Snickerdoodle Thumbprint Cookies are tender, cinnamon-sweet cookies with a delightful eggnog white chocolate ganache filling. Perfect for the holiday season, these cookies combine the classic flavors of snickerdoodles with a festive creamy center, offering a unique twist that will impress your guests and satisfy sweet cravings.

Ingredients

Scale

Cookie Dough

4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup light brown sugar, gently packed
¼ cup white granulated sugar
1 medium egg (about 50 grams), room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
245 grams all purpose flour (about 2 cups if measured by volume)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar

For Rolling Dough Balls

⅓ cup sugar mixed with 2 tablespoons cinnamon

Eggnog Ganache Filling

4 ounces white chocolate, chopped or broken into small pieces
2 tablespoons eggnog
1 tablespoon dark rum or ¼ teaspoon rum extract (optional)
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

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Instructions

Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure it’s ready for baking the cookies.
Cream Butter and Sugars: In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the room temperature butter, light brown sugar, and white granulated sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl once to incorporate everything evenly.
Add Egg and Vanilla: Add the medium egg and vanilla extract to the creamed butter and sugars, mixing again until fully combined and creamy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Mix Dry Ingredients: Sift together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and kosher salt to avoid lumps and add them to the wet mixture. Mix until a thick dough forms.
Shape and Roll Dough Balls: Scoop the dough into 1 tablespoon sized balls (approximately 15 grams), roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture, then place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Press down the centers of each ball with a ½ teaspoon or your finger/thumb to create an indentation. If the dough cracks, press it back together gently.
Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 7 minutes. If the indents fill in during baking, gently press back the centers while the cookies are still warm.
Prepare Ganache Filling: In a microwave-safe bowl, combine chopped white chocolate, eggnog, and optional rum or rum extract. Microwave in 15-second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Alternatively, melt the mixture in a double boiler. Stir in freshly grated nutmeg.
Fill Cookies: Spoon about ½ teaspoon of the eggnog ganache into the center indentations of each cookie. Top with additional freshly grated nutmeg.
Set Filling: Let the filled cookies set at room temperature for a few hours until the ganache firms up. For quicker setting, place the cookies in the refrigerator.

Notes

Use a medium egg (about 50 grams) for best results; using larger eggs will alter cookie texture.
Regular unsalted butter with average fat content is preferred; European-style butter may cause spreading.
Butter should be at room temperature but still slightly firm, not too soft or greasy, to maintain cookie shape.
Chilling the dough is optional but can help cookies hold their shape better if prepared ahead of baking.
Omit rum or rum extract if preferred without needing a substitute.
Weigh flour for accuracy; spoon and level if measuring by volume to ensure correct cookie texture.
Press indentations again after baking if they fill in to keep space for the filling.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 cookie
Calories: 120 kcal
Sugar: 8 g
Sodium: 60 mg
Fat: 6 g
Saturated Fat: 3.5 g
Unsaturated Fat: 2 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Carbohydrates: 15 g
Fiber: 0.5 g
Protein: 1.5 g
Cholesterol: 20 mg