Persimmon Jam & Rye Thumbprint Cookies
Fun jam-filled cookies featuring sweet hachiya persimmons and bourbon, and a rich cookie dough made with rye flour and almond extract.
Servings 24 cookies
Calories 122kcal
Ingredients
Persimmon Jam
- 2 Hachiya Persimmons ripe and soft
- ¼ Cup Bourbon
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1-2 Cinnamon Stick
- 1-2 Star anise
- pinch Salt
Thumbprint Cookies
- ¾ Cup Unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks) room temperature
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Egg room temperature
- ½ tsp Almond Extract
- ¾ Cup Rye Flour
- 1 ¼ Cups All-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
Instructions
Persimmon Jam
- Scoop the flesh out of the persimmons, removing any seeds, and add to a medium pot with the bourbon, sugar, cinnamon, and star anise. Heat on medium-high, stirring to dissolve the sugar until the mixture is boiling.
- Continue boiling for 5 minutes. Then use a slotted spoon to remove the cinnamon stick and star anise, and discard.
- Stir gently, and then continue boiling another 5 minutes, using a spatula or wooden spoon to break up any large pieces of fruit, until thickened slightly. Turn off the heat and stir in salt to taste.
- Let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a glass bowl or jar. Cover loosely and set aside until cool enough to handle.
Thumbprint Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 375°F with a rack in the middle. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium-low speed until lightened in color and fluffy in texture, about 2 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides, then add in the egg and almond extract, and continue mixing on medium-low until thoroughly combined, about 1 minute.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, and baking powder until uniform. Add the dry ingredients into the mixer bowl, and mix on low until just incorporated.
- Form the dough into 1-inch balls and place them on the prepared baking sheet, 2-inches apart. I fit 8 cookies on a standard half sheet pan. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the freezer and place directly into the oven. Bake for 7-9 minutes. The cookies will not look done, and they should have spread slightly.
- Before cooling, use a cork or a another similarly sized object to make a depression in the center of each cookie. Then fill with ½ tsp of the persimmon jam.
- Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely. Serve warm or cooled the same day, or store these in the fridge for 3-4 days. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving chilled cookies.
Notes
- Make-Ahead Tip:
- You can make the persimmon jam up to 2 weeks in advance. Store in a sealed jar in the fridge.
- You can make the cookie dough 2-3 days in advance and store covered in the fridge. Let it come to room temperature before forming the balls.
- Store baked and filled cookies in the fridge for 3-4 days. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.
- Substitutions:
- If you don't like rye flour, you can use all white flour, or swap the rye for white whole wheat.
- For a different and more subtle flavor, replace the almond extract with vanilla extract.
- If you are not able to find persimmons or don't like them, these can be filled with your favorite jam. Peach, apricot, cherry, or raspberry would work well with these cookies.