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Let’s talk Christmas Cookies, Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies to be exact. Rich chewy gingerbread cookie dough rolled in sugar, then filled with eggnog and white chocolate. These are easy to make, and once filled will make a beautiful addition to your cookie box.
I first created this recipe in 2018 as a way to blend my love of classic gingerbread cookies with cozy holiday eggnog. Instead of the crisp texture used for gingerbread houses, I wanted a soft, chewy gingerbread cookie, one that stays tender even days later. To make it extra special, each cookie gets a thumbprint filled with a rich eggnog white chocolate ganache.
I’ve happily snacked on them days after baking and they’re still just as soft and chewy as the day they came out of the oven. That makes these gingerbread thumbprints perfect for holiday cookie boxes or edible gifts, you can package them with confidence knowing they’ll stay fresh.
Made these and turned them into bears! They turned out sooo good, the texture of the cookie is absolutely amazing. I didn’t have any eggnog, so I added just a touch of cinnamon to the white chocolate (along with some milk to melt it) and it worked great. These are definitely being added to the annual holiday cookie roster!
Key Ingredients
- All Purpose Flour: Flour with a slightly lower protein level of 10-5-11% protein delivers a softer crumb than one with a higher level protein.
- Test Note: Weigh the flour for accurate measuring to prevent a dense dough and sift for better mixing into the wet ingredients.
- Molasses: The key to a classic gingerbread recipe is molasses! Make sure to use “unsulphured” molasses and not the overpowering blackstrap molasses.
- Test Note: I always use Grandma’s Molasses when making gingerbread.
- Eggnog: Holiday eggnog is mixed with the white chocolate to add a little spiced nog note to the filling.
- Test Note: Use store bought or homemade, alcohol free is best.
- Unsalted Butter: For tender cookies I like to use European style butter with 82% butterfat. (Careful not to use higher butterfat options that will cause spreading).
- Test Note: American style unsalted butter at 80% butterfat will also work for this recipe, it just gives a slightly less tender crumb.
- European butter will also lend to a slightly softer dough, even when cold compared to American butter that will chill much firmer.
- White Chocolate: I love the flavor of white chocolate paired with gingerbread, but you can swap out for dark or semi-sweet chocolate if you prefer.
- Test Note: Choose a white chocolate baking bar, I’m using Lindt Excellence White Chocolate in this recipe. Different white chocolate have varying levels of butterfat and therefore will look slightly cream in color.
- Baking Soda: A 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda allows the cookies to spread just enough, while creating a tender cookie crumb.
Helpful Tips
- Make a thumbprint with a ‘half teaspoon’: Use a small measuring spoon to gently press a perfect ‘thumbprint’ into your cookie dough. Super cold dough may crack slightly, if this happens, just roll the dough ball in between your hands again before pressing the thumbprint shape.
- Bake a test cookie. Start with a single cookie to see how many minutes work best in your oven for less time to get a soft cookie or another minute to have slightly chewier cookies.
- Don’t over bake the cookies: Thumbprints won’t spread as much as other cookies and since they are already brown, timing is more important than visual cues. Baking them even an extra minute until they are firm on the cookie sheet will result in dense cookies. Remove cookies from the oven while they are still slightly soft.
- Re-shape thumbprint after baking: Once out of the oven, take your teaspoon and gently press down your ‘thumbprint’ again. Don’t go lower than halfway through the cookie.
- Cool Completely: Allow the cookies to cool completely before filling the center with the eggnog white chocolate.
- Pipe the chocolate filling for neatness: Transfer the eggnog white chocolate to a piping bag, snip off just the tip of the bag and fill in the thumbprint of each cooled cookie. Warm eggnog chocolate will pipe smoother! (A spoon works too, but it’s messier.)
- Top with spice: Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg before the chocolate filling sets.
- Allow white chocolate time to set: Before stacking or packaging, the filling needs time to firm. You can speed the process up by placing the cookies in an even layer in an airtight container in the fridge or just let them sit at room temp until the center is firm to the touch.
How to Make Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies
- Shape chilled cookie dough into smooth balls, then roll in granulated sugar.
- Take a teaspoon sized measuring spoon and gently press down into the cookie ball about 1/3 of the way down to make an indent. Bake until puffed and mostly set about 9-10 minutes.
- The indent will disappear some while baking. Remove cookies from the oven and immediately press the teaspoon back into the top of the cookies to create room for the filling. Allow cookies to cool completely before adding eggnog white chocolate ganache to the centers.
- Pipe the warm chocolate ganache into cooled thumbprint cookies with a piping bag. Sprinkle cinnamon or nutmeg onto the ganache before it sets.
How to Store Cookies
Store baked and decorated cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Or, freeze cookies without the eggnog white chocolate filling in air tight freezer safe bag or container for up to 3 months.
FAQs
Do I need to chill the cookie dough before baking?
Yes, cookie dough should be chilled. Cold cookie dough is needed for firming the butter and holding the cookie shape when baked.
Can I make the cookie dough ahead?
Thumbprint cookie dough can be made up to 2 days prior to baking. Cover in plastic wrap and stored in the fridge until ready to bake. Pre-scoop the cookie dough into balls before placing it in the fridge. Cold cookie dough is much harder to scoop out.
Can you freeze thumbprint cookie dough?
After cookie dough is made, shape into a disk and store in freezer safe plastic wrap or an air tight freezer safe bag for up to 3 months. Allow dough to warm about 20 minutes to soften for scooping into balls.
★★★★★ Please leave a star rating and review below if you make this recipe! THANK YOU!!
Eggnog Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies
Eggnog Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies made with molasses, spices, eggnog, and white chocolate. Perfect holiday cookie recipe!
Click Here for Help with Ingredients in this Recipe
Equipment
- Stand or Handheld Electric Mixer
Recipe Video
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 375 grams (3 cups) all purpose flour, 10.5-11% protein
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 140 grams (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter *European style butter (82% butterfat), softened to room temperature (*American style butter will also work)
- 147 grams (⅔ cup) light or dark brown sugar, packed
- 50 grams (1 large) egg, room temperature
- 170 grams (½ cup) unsulphered molasses, *not blackstrap (can swap for treacle)
Topping
- 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated sugar
Eggnog White Chocolate
- 170 grams (1 cup) quality white chocolate baking bar, or quality white chocolate chips, roughly chopped
- 60 grams (¼ cup) eggnog, alcohol free
Instructions
Make the Cookie Dough
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. Hand whisk to evenly distribute ingredients and set aside.375 grams all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, (or a large bowl using a handheld mixer) beat together softened butter with brown sugar until a creamy paste is formed. 1-2 minutes.140 grams unsalted butter *European style butter (82% butterfat), 147 grams light or dark brown sugar
- Add the egg and molasses to the butter mixture. Mix on medium until smooth, scraping sides and bottom of bowl with spatula as needed.50 grams egg, 170 grams unsulphered molasses
- Next, spoon in the flour mixture a third at a time. Mixing in between each addition until all is incorporated and a smooth cookie dough is formed. Scrape bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
Scoop and Chill
- Pre-measure cookie dough balls before chilling. Take a 1.5 tablespoon capacity cookie scoop and measure out dough into 1 ½ inch balls. Place the cookie balls on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet or dish, cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight to develop flavor.
- Scooping the dough before chilling is much easier than after the dough is cold. Chilling allows the dough to rest and the butter to firm, preventing cookies from spreading too much in the oven.
Shape and Bake
- Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃) and line a rimmed cookie sheet with a double layer of parchment paper. Bake in batches.
- After cookie dough has properly chilled, roll the cookie dough balls in between the palms of your hands to pack and smooth. Place a cookie ball in the bowl of granulated sugar, gently roll to coat completely. Repeat with remaining dough balls.50 grams granulated sugar
- Place dough balls on prepared baking sheet and space them 2-inches apart. One baking sheet should be able to fit 9 cookies at a time.
- Shaping: Use a rounded 'half teaspoon' measuring spoon to gently press a perfect 'thumbprint' into your cookie dough. (only press 1/3 of the way down) **If the cookie cracks slightly roll in your hands again and then reshape.
- Transfer baking tray to the middle rack of the oven and bake for 9-10 minutes until they are set but still soft.
- Don't over bake cookies until they are hard. They will firm as they cool into tender cookies, but not a crisp gingerbread.
- Place the baking sheet on a wire cooling rack. After removing cookies from the oven, immediately take your teaspoon and gently reshape the 'thumbprint' while cookies are still warm. **Just enough pressure to adjust the shape, as the indent will disappear some when baking, since they are being baked without a filling.
- Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes. Then, transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before filling with eggnog white chocolate.
Eggnog White Chocolate Filling
- Combine the eggnog with the white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 1.5 minutes in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted and smooth.(You can also use a double boiler if preferred.)170 grams quality white chocolate baking bar, 60 grams eggnog
- Transfer eggnog white chocolate to a piping bag. Pipe into thumbprint of cooled cookies.
- Allow chocolate to set for 30 minutes to an hour after filling. You can also pop the cookies in the fridge to speed things up, just don't store them in the fridge.
- Sprinkle with cinnamon or grated nutmeg!
- Store cookies in an air tight container at room temperature.
Notes
Ingredients Used:
Troubleshooting: If the cookie dough cracks when you press down to make the thumbprint impression, the dough may be too cold. Simply roll the dough ball between your hands again, as the heat from you hands will warm it slightly and then press the teaspoon down once more for a perfect thumbprint cookie shape. Shaping Tip: I prefer to shape the cookie dough into round balls while the dough is cold, then coat in sugar and press the indent before baking. If you roll the cookie dough balls in sugar and create the thumbprint before chilling, the shape will be off due to the softer dough. The sugar coating also gets absorbed by the soft dough and doesn’t stay as sparkly and crunchy like it does with colder dough.
*Weighing flour is how I test all my recipes. The measurement I use: 1 cup of flour = 125 grams. Please note that this amount can change based on a different baker’s recipe or using a conversion tool. The weight listed in the recipe is how it was tested and should be used for accuracy. *Different brands of flour are made with soft or hard wheat and have varying levels of protein, ranging from low to high. This can change the final result of a baked good, giving different outcomes on the same recipe. I list the level of protein in the ingredients, the brand of flour tested with and a link to My Baking Ingredients for additional details. When choosing a flour, look at the protein level on the back of the bag and consult the recommended amount for the recipe.
- Flour: Gold Medal All Purpose Flour 10.5-11% protein
- Butter: President Unsalted European Style Butter 82% butterfat
- Molasses: Grandma’s Unsulphured Molasses
- White Chocolate: Lindt Excellence White Chocolate Bar
- Medium #40 scoop: yields 25 cookies: cookie dough balls weigh 34 grams each (bake 9-10 minutes)
- Small #50 scoop: yields 34 cookies: cookie dough balls weigh 24 grams each (bake 8-9 minutes)
Troubleshooting: If the cookie dough cracks when you press down to make the thumbprint impression, the dough may be too cold. Simply roll the dough ball between your hands again, as the heat from you hands will warm it slightly and then press the teaspoon down once more for a perfect thumbprint cookie shape. Shaping Tip: I prefer to shape the cookie dough into round balls while the dough is cold, then coat in sugar and press the indent before baking. If you roll the cookie dough balls in sugar and create the thumbprint before chilling, the shape will be off due to the softer dough. The sugar coating also gets absorbed by the soft dough and doesn’t stay as sparkly and crunchy like it does with colder dough.
*Weighing flour is how I test all my recipes. The measurement I use: 1 cup of flour = 125 grams. Please note that this amount can change based on a different baker’s recipe or using a conversion tool. The weight listed in the recipe is how it was tested and should be used for accuracy. *Different brands of flour are made with soft or hard wheat and have varying levels of protein, ranging from low to high. This can change the final result of a baked good, giving different outcomes on the same recipe. I list the level of protein in the ingredients, the brand of flour tested with and a link to My Baking Ingredients for additional details. When choosing a flour, look at the protein level on the back of the bag and consult the recommended amount for the recipe.
Tried this recipe?Mention @twocupsflour or tag #twocupsflour!
I love the way these cookies turned out! The flavour and texture are perfect – rich and spiced with a soft chew. I didn’t have eggnog on hand so I added a touch of cinnamon to my white chocolate filling which worked great! I also shaped them into bears, using the thumbprint as the snout (picture posted in a comment on Pinterest), so they were not only delicious but also adorable 🙂
Hi Julia, thanks so much for trying the recipe and giving feedback! I love your little bears so much, I added the photo to the post above. I’m going to have to try making them too. So glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
The cookies expanded and basically lost the thumbprint shape which I fixed when they were still hot but they just don’t quite look like your average thumbprint. Chilled overnight too. Maybe the recipe needs to be more adjusted to a shortbread texture with gingerbread flavoring?
Hi Sam, thank you so much for trying this recipe and for sharing your experience! Since these cookies aren’t baked with the jam inside, the thumbprints do need a quick re-shape while the cookies are still warm. The molasses in the dough (an invert sugar) is what gives these cookies their soft, chewy gingerbread texture, which is different from a classic shortbread thumbprint that’s more buttery and crumbly.
This recipe was intentionally designed as a blend of chewy gingerbread and a thumbprint style cookie, so they won’t be exactly like a traditional shortbread thumbprint but the flavor and texture are part of what makes them special. I really appreciate you giving them a try and for taking the time to leave a comment.
I’m a very experienced cookie baker and this recipe does not work. Followed exactly and they went flat when put in oven. Not only unable to fill as their was no well remaining, but the cookie never firmed even with extra bake time. Just a big mess. Had to throw it all away. Very disappointing.
Hi Donna, I’ve never had these cookies bake flat before, they always stay thick. Was the dough chilled before baking? If the thumbprint shape isn’t as pronounced once baked, I do recommend reshaping slightly with the teaspoon while the cookies are still warm. Also not sure about cookie firming? As cookies cool they go from tender to more firm, but not firm like a ginger snap.
So tasty and fun to make, big hit during the holidays. Be patient while the white chocolate is setting! I thought the cookie part may dry out being left out while the chocolate set, but nope, still chewy and delicious 🙂
So glad you like them, they’re so fun to make!
Très délicieux!!
I made these last Christmas and they were perfect. I tripled the recipe this year and they turned out wrong. Taste was great but they did not hold their shape. They spread out and went completely flat, even from frozen (I was getting creative on the third tray!). I had to have done something wrong this year. Boyfriend and mom chalked it up to me being forgetful but I swear I followed all of the measurements! Only thing I can think of was converting 10 tbsp of butter to 142 grams using a conversion website and multiplying by 3 for three batches. Because I really did not want to measure 30 tbsp of butter. I wish the butter measurement was in grams not tbsp. It is strange because some other ingredients are measured in grams here. Oh well – I have 114 flat delicious ginger cookies to eat by myself instead of gift to my friends and college professors lol! ♡
Just made these cookies after finding on pinterest. They are fabulous!! super moist and flavour is delicious. I may have been making ugly ones just to snack on 😉 thanks for the recipe!
Can I freeze the cookie dough balls then bake later? Have you tried this?
These cookies are amazing!! My husband was snitching them as fast as I added the white chocolate eggnog topping. He turned around with four in his hand and said, ” Bet you can’t eat just one!” They were a big hit at Thanksgiving too!! They are now one of our favorites!
We love these! I must have made very small cookies, as I got 56 out of one batch, but everyone loved them. They were the perfect bite!
Wow Christine that’s awesome!!! I’m so glad you liked them!
Just made these tonight and they are FANTASTIC! I kept stealing them before I packed them up (you know, just the ugly ones that the topping leaked over on)—new favorite Christmas cookie!
Hey Steph! so glad you like them!! haha! Merry Christmas!!
These cookies were so good and simple! Took them in for a work cookie exchange, and people were already sneaking them away before the exchange. Plus my husband was disappointed we couldn’t keep them all and asked for me to make another batch. This recipe was super moist, the tweaks were super helpful and the gingerbread flavor is perfect! I did tweak the recipe slightly to make them gluten free. Using the recommended 375 grams of flour, I used Cup4Cup. Then to ensure they got some height and maintained elasticity, I added 3/4 tsp xantham gum and increased the baking soda to 2 & 3/4 tsp baking soda. Otherwise, kept everything exactly the same.
I can’t wait to make these again – probably within a week! Thanks for the great recipe Jenn!
Thank you so much Jordan!!! Happy you like them:)
Lovely recipe! Came out great. I would have loved more eggnog flavor. If I double the eggnog will that prevent the chocolate from setting?
These look amazing! Since I’d like to make them ahead for a cookie exchange, can they be refrigerated or frozen? How long will they keep at room temperature?
I would refrigerate in an air-tight container for about 7 days or freeze for up to 30 days.
Does it matter what kind of white chocolate chips you use??? As in, does it need to be real white chocolate or are the ones made w palm oil okay??
Hi Kimberly, Any brand white chocolate chips for baking will work 🙂