Buttery, rich, crunchy and chocolatey these chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies are incredibly easy to make and will surely impress anyone! They’re perfect for Christmas, tea parties, birthdays or just for yourself!
About The Recipe
These chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies are a delicious twist to classic thumbprint cookies which are usually made with jam. It consists of a super easy sugar cookie base, and the cookie dough is rolled in chopped roasted hazelnuts and indented in the middle before being baked. Once they come out of the oven they’re topped with a luscious swirl of chocolate hazelnut spread!
Ease: this chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies recipe is very simple and I would definitely consider it beginner-friendly. It does require a hand or stand mixer, but that does not mean you can’t make this by hand. Creaming the butter and sugar is the main step- where it’s really helpful to use am electric mixer, but if you don’t have one you can still do it with a whisk or spatula!
This chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies recipe is made with simple ingredients that are easily available, butter, sugar, flour…. just the basics! For the chocolate filling I did use Nutella, but you could also just use melted chocolate or any other chocolate hazelnut spread. (Note: it does not have to be chocolate hazelnut, it could just be plain chocolate spread)
Let’s talk about the flavor of these cookies: the cookie itself is buttery and soft in the center and crispy on the edges. The exterior of the cookie is covered in hazelnuts, so that gives it and extra crunch plus lot’s of nutty flavor! The filling is a dollop of Nutella, which is a chocolate hazelnut spread so it goes beautifully with the hazelnut exterior. Plus the amount of Nutella you add depends totally on you! Add as much or as little as you’d like! Overall, they taste incredible and are loved by people of all ages.
What You Need To Make Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies
Flour: regular all purpose flour, I haven’t made this recipe with any other type of flour.
Corn Starch: key ingredient that help these sugar cookies to keep their shape and makes then nice and soft in the center.
Egg Yolk: adds richness to the cookies, you won’t need the egg white as it causes the cookies to spread.
Sugar: I used powdered sugar, also known as confectioner’s or icing sugar. If you don’t have powdered sugar you can also just use regular granulated sugar.
Butter: you’ll need unsalted softened butter, the softer your butter the easier it will be to cream with the sugar. Make sure it’s not melted. How to bring butter to room temp. fast?
Hazelnuts: I’m using roasted hazelnuts, you’ll need to chop them very finely. You could do this by hand or even use a food processor, just make sure not to blend it into a powder!
Nutella: You can use any chocolate hazelnut spread or even just melted chocolate. See tip below.
How To Make Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies
Step 1: In a small bowl, sift and combine all of your dry ingredients and set aside.
Step 2: In a separate medium sized bowl, cream the softened butter and powdered sugar until creamy, about 2-3 min. Add in the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
Step 3: Add the dry ingredients into the wet and fold everything together using a spatula until fully combined. Cover and chill the dough for 20 minutes.
Step 4: Scoop 1 Tbsp cookie dough balls onto a parchment lined baking tray with at least 1/2 inch of space between each ball (the cookies only spread slightly).
Step 5: Roll each of the balls in finely chopped hazelnuts, then gently press in the center of each ball using a 1/2 tsp or your thumb (it’s called thumbprint cookies after all). Bake in an oven preheated at 180 °C / 350 °F for 12-15 minutes, until the bottom edges just start to brown.
Step 6: Once the cookies come out of the oven use the same 1/2 tsp to press the down in the center as the center would have raised a bit in the oven. Then let the cookies cool completely in their trays. Using a piping bag fitted with a regular round tip, swirl on some Nutella in the center. You could also just use a spoon to dollop on the Nutella. All you have to do now is enjoy!
Storing/Freezing Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies
Store any leftovers in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to a week!
To freeze the cookie dough: scoop the chilled cookie dough on to a baking tray lined with parchment paper and freeze for 2 hours. Then transfer the frozen cookie dough balls into a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature and then roll each ball in chopped hazelnuts. Then follow the same steps from step 8 in the recipe.
Pro Tips
- Measure you flour correctly! Adding too much or too little flour will change the texture of the cookies dramatically. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off using the back of the spoon
- If you have a convection oven (oven with a fan setting), reduce the temperature by 20 degrees.
- Chilling the cookie dough is mandatory in this recipe otherwise the cookies will spread way too much. Cold dough results in a thicker cookie, so make sure to chill the dough for at least 20 minutes. You can also make the cookie dough the day before and refrigerate overnight.
- Use room temperature butter, this make a huge difference when creaming the butter and sugar together.
- Forgot to take your butter out of the fridge in advance? No problem microwave it on the Defrost setting (30%) in 5-second increments until it’s softened.
- If you’re going to be stacking these cookies, I’d recommend adding melted chocolate in the center instead of Nutella. This way when the chocolate sets you can easily stack the cookies on top of each other!
- Don’t skip the corn starch, this is the key ingredient that help these sugar cookies to keep their shape and makes then nice and soft in the center.
FAQ’s
Can I skip chilling the dough?
No! This step is crucial for getting sugar cookies with nice sharp edges, skipping this step will result in the cookies loosing their shape and the centers will become flat.
Can I make the cookie dough ahead of time?
Of course, the dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Once you’re ready to use it, just let it sit on the counter for 5 minutes before scooping it into balls because the dough will be slightly hard.
Can I add a different filling?
Technically, yes, because you can do whatever you want. But if you want to make chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies, I’d recommend you fill your cookies with Nutella or melted chocolate or even chocolate ganache! If you don’t like chocolate try these raspberry thumbprint cookies.
Do I have to use roasted hazelnuts?
No, because the hazelnuts are going to bake in the oven anyway which will make them nice and toasty!
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Recipe Card
Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies
Buttery, rich, crunchy and chocolatey these chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies are incredibly easy to make and will surely impress anyone! They’re perfect for Christmas, tea parties, birthdays or just for yourself!
Prep Time: 15 min
Chill Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 12 min
Total Time: 47 min
Course: Dessert
Servings: 12 (large) cookies
Calories: 228kcal
— Print Recipe —
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour (180g)
- 1 Tbsp corn starch (14g)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (113g)
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar (42g)
- 1 small egg yolk, room temp.
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup hazelnuts, finely chopped
- Nutella (as needed)
Instructions
- In a small bowl sift and combine the all purpose flour, corn starch, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate medium sized bowl cream together the softened butter and powdered sugar until pale and creamy, 2-3 minutes. (using hand/stand mixer)
- Add in the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
- Add the dry ingredient mixture into the butter mixture and fold everything together using a spatula until fully combined.
- Cover and chill the dough for 20 minutes.
- Once it’s been 10-12 minutes, preheat your oven to 180 °C / 350 °F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Scoop the cookie dough into 1 Tbsp balls and place on the prepared pan at least 1/2 an inch apart.
- Roll each of the balls in the finely chopped hazelnuts, then use a 1/2 teaspoon to press into the center of each cookie dough ball to create an indentation for the filling. Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes until the bottom edges just start to brown.
- Right after you remove the cookies from the oven, use the sale 1/2 teaspoon to again press into the indent you made before baking. This is done because the centers will have raised a it while baking. Let the cookies cool completely on the tray before moving them.
- Using a piping bag fitted with a round tip or even just a spoon, swirl on as much Nutella as you’d like into the center of the cooled cookies. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Calories: 228.5kcal
Total Fat: 14.53g
Carbs: 21.69g
Sugars: 9.41g
Protein: 3.07g
Sodium: 54.73mg
Fiber: 1.18g
** Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more. **
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