Rhubarb Thumbprint Cookies
My local food quest suffers no greater challenge than it does in January and February. I love fresh fruit, and as I don’t live in a citrus-producing state, the options are pretty sparse for local fruit.
The earliest harbinger of spring, however, earlier even than the asparagus and strawberries that declare the season’s coming with certainty, is rhubarb.
Rhubarb, which grows in varieties ranging in color from pale green to deep red, is technically a vegetable. However, it has been classified as a fruit in the United States since the late 1940s since it is primarily used as a fruit. Naturally quite tart, it is typically paired with sugar and other sweet fruits to create tangy, flavorful desserts.
Rather like this one.
These little cookies feature drops of tart rhubarb jam nestled in a soft butter cookie. The jam is easy enough to make: just a little sugar and vanilla and heat and soon enough, jam! I admit… I was hoping for a pretty red jam, but since the vendor selling rhubarb right now grows the green variety, it’s actually sorta greenish-brown. Oh well! It can’t all be gems and sparkles.
And then the cookies themselves! What a delightful discovery this recipe was. These cookies are bright and soft and wonderfully comforting. Plus, they whip up quickly into an easy, workable dough.
Once the dough is rolled out into balls, each one gets a big ol’ thumbprint filled with jam. And for a little extra fun, some sugar is added for a sparkly crunch before the cookies head in the oven for baking.
This recipe can be even easier! Don’t wanna make your own quick jam? Get a jar of your favorite and use it instead! I see lots of batches of these cookies in my future… filled with all manner of pretty, fruity flavors.
Maybe I’ll get my pretty red cookies after all.
Rhubarb Thumbprint Cookies
Adapted from Farmers’ Market Desserts
4-5 stalks rhubarb, about 2 cups chopped
3/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 c + 2 T granulated sugar
1 tsp sea salt
2 large egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 3/4 c all-purpose flour
raw or other large-grain sugar
Chop rhubarb into pieces, then pulse in a food processor until relatively fine. Combine rhubarb, sugar, and vanilla extract in a medium sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for about 15 minutes or until mixture is thick and jam-like. Spoon the hot jam into a small dish and set aside to cool while you prepare the cookie dough.
Preheat oven to 350°F. In the bowl of a standing mixer or other large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, and salt until it is light and creamy, about 5 minutes. Mix in each egg yolk, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl between each addition. Add vanilla and mix well. On low speed, add the flour a cup at a time and mix just until combined, making sure that all dry bits are mixed in.
Set up two large cookie sheets. Make balls of dough about one inch in diameter by rolling them between your palms, placing them about two inches apart on the sheets. Once all dough has been rolled, use your finger or thumb to form a deep impression in the center of each ball. Using a 1/4 teaspoon, fill each impression with the rhubarb mixture. Sprinkle raw sugar over the cookies, focusing on the jam centers. Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden-brown. Remove sheets from the oven and allow the cookies to cool, on the sheets, for 5 minutes, then transfer them to cooling racks to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container, separating the layers by waxed paper, for up to one week.
