Hazelberries
These buttery thumbprint cookies combine Oregon grown hazelnuts and Marionberries. Start with little balls of chilled dough, create a “thumbprint” indentation, dip in sugar and nuts, and then fill with jam. The taste of hazelnuts and sweet Marionberry jam is an absolutely perfect taste combination.
Hazelnuts are grown primarily in the state of Oregon in the USA, along with Turkey and Italy. Marionberries are named for Marion County, the Oregon County where they originated. Marionberries, a cross between Chehalem and Ollalie berries, were developed by Oregon State University's Agricultural Research and Development Program in Corvallis, Oregon, beginning in 1945, and finally introduced in 1956.
Hazelnuts are grown primarily in the state of Oregon in the USA, along with Turkey and Italy. Marionberries are named for Marion County, the Oregon County where they originated. Marionberries, a cross between Chehalem and Ollalie berries, were developed by Oregon State University's Agricultural Research and Development Program in Corvallis, Oregon, beginning in 1945, and finally introduced in 1956.
Recipe type: Dessert | Thumbprint Cookies | Shaped Cookies
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Recipe Notes
Pan: Two Large Baking Sheets Pan: Prep: Lightly Greased or Parchment Lined Oven Temp: 350° Yield: 5 Dozen Storage: Airtight Container, Room Temperature
Help: Cookie Hints and Tips, Toasting Nuts and Seeds
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Help: Cookie Hints and Tips, Toasting Nuts and Seeds
TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast,
accurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.Ingredients
Dough:
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup hazelnuts (filberts), toasted, skinned, and finely ground
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Tip: See Toasting Nuts and Seeds for toasting and skinning hazelnuts
Filling:
- ¼ cup hazelnuts (filberts), toasted, skinned, and finely ground
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- About ⅔ cup Marionberry jam (or raspberry or blackberry jam)
Instructions
Dough:
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour and ground hazelnuts; whisk together to mix. Set aside.
- In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and sugar; mix together until well combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula so the mixture blends evenly. Add vanilla extract; mix until thoroughly blended. Add flour mixture, mixing just until combined. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare 2 large baking sheets; lightly grease with shortening, or line with parchment paper, or line with a non-stick baking mat.
Filling:
- In a small bowl, combine ground hazelnuts and sugar. Set aside.
- Shape chilled dough into small balls, about 1” in diameter. Dip tops of cookies in nut and sugar mixture. Tip: A small ice cream scoop is ideal for making uniform-sized cookies.
- Place balls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets. With your thumb or index finger, press an indentation in the center of each ball to hold the filling. Tip: instead of using your finger, use a wooden spoon with a rounded handle; make a deep indentation with the tip of the handle in the center of each cookie. If the dough sticks dip the tip in flour before pressing.
- Fill the center of each cookie with about ½ teaspoon Marionberry jam. Do not overfill or the jam will run over while baking. Tip: to fill the cookies neatly, use a teaspoon, point the tip of the spoon down into the indentation and slide the preserves off with another spoon or your fingertip.
- Bake: Bake 15 minutes or until cookies are set and very lightly browned. Remove cookies from baking sheets with a metal spatula and place on a wire cooling rack to cool.
Recipe adapted from Oregonian FOODday, December 2006