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Thumbprint Cookies are the buttery, melt-in-your-mouth cookies with a little well in the middle just begging to be filled, and this white chocolate version is my absolute favorite. I baked a big batch one snowy December afternoon while Maddie pressed every thumbprint and Lizzie handled the sprinkles. They are as soft and tender as our Easy Cream Cheese Cookies.
A tender cream cheese cookie base gets rolled in powdered sugar, pressed with a thumbprint, baked until just set, and filled with an easy three-ingredient white chocolate ganache.
Thumbprint Cookies Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 10 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 28 cookies
- ⚡ Calories: 161kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Buttery, melt-in-your-mouth cookie with sweet white chocolate
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, about as simple as our Easy Almond Cookies
Quick Answer
Cream together butter and cream cheese, mix in powdered sugar, vanilla, and an egg, then stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. Chill the dough, roll it into balls, coat in powdered sugar, and press a thumbprint into the center of each. Bake at 375 degrees F for about 10 minutes, then fill the wells with white chocolate ganache and top with sprinkles.
Jump to:
- Thumbprint Cookies Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Thumbprint Cookies
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Thumbprint Cookies FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Cookie Recipes
- White Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Cream cheese makes them tender. Adding cream cheese to the dough gives these thumbprint cookies a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture you do not get from butter alone.
- Chilling stops spreading. An hour in the fridge firms the dough so the cookies hold their round shape and the thumbprint stays defined.
- A powdered sugar coating. Rolling the dough balls in powdered sugar gives a sweet, slightly crackly outside, like a snowball cookie.
- Press the thumbprint twice. Making the indent before and again right after baking keeps a deep well for plenty of ganache.
- Three-ingredient ganache. White chocolate chips, butter, and sweetened condensed milk melt into a thick, glossy filling with no thermometer needed.
- They are make-ahead friendly. The dough chills and the baked cookies store well, so they are perfect for holiday cookie trays.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Soft, buttery, and pretty enough for a cookie tray, with that wow-factor thumbprint center.
- The easy white chocolate ganache filling sets up thick and glossy, just like the topping on our Golden Oreo Cheesecake Bars.
- You can fill the centers with any color sprinkles to match the holiday or party.
Key Ingredients
These Thumbprint Cookies use simple baking staples for the dough plus three easy ingredients for the white chocolate ganache filling.
- Cream Cheese: The secret to an ultra-soft, tender cookie that practically melts in your mouth.
- Butter: Creams with the cream cheese for a rich, buttery base.
- Powdered Sugar: Sweetens the dough and gives the rolled cookies a crackly, snowy coating.
- White Chocolate Chips: Melt into the ganache filling for that signature sweet center.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: Makes the ganache thick, glossy, and foolproof, no tempering required.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These Thumbprint Cookies are endlessly customizable for any flavor or holiday.
- Fill with jam: Use raspberry, strawberry, or apricot jam for a classic fruit thumbprint cookie.
- Try chocolate ganache: Swap the white chocolate chips for semisweet for a richer filling.
- Add almond flavor: A few drops of almond extract in the dough pairs beautifully with white chocolate.
- Match the holiday: Change up the sprinkle colors for Christmas, Valentine, or birthday cookies.
- Add citrus zest: A little lemon or orange zest in the dough brightens the whole cookie.
How to Make Thumbprint Cookies
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth, then mix in 1 1/2 cups of the powdered sugar, the egg, and the vanilla until combined.
- Slowly add the flour mixture a little at a time until fully combined, then chill the dough in the fridge for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Roll the dough into 1 tablespoon balls and roll each in the remaining powdered sugar.
- Use a teaspoon or round utensil to press a thumbprint into the top of each cookie, then bake for about 10 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool on the tray for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the ganache by microwaving the white chocolate chips, butter, and sweetened condensed milk for 1 minute, then stirring until smooth.
- Fill each cookie indent with the white chocolate ganache and top with sprinkles if desired.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Do not skip the chill. Cold dough holds its shape and keeps the thumbprint well from flattening in the oven.
- Press the thumbprint twice. Re-press the centers right after baking while the cookies are warm for a deeper well.
- Use room-temperature butter and cream cheese. They cream together smoothly only when softened.
- Let the ganache cool slightly. Give it a few minutes to thicken before filling so it does not run over the edges.
- Roll uniform balls. A tablespoon scoop keeps the cookies the same size so they bake evenly.
- Store airtight. Keep them in a sealed container so they stay soft for days.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
These Thumbprint Cookies are a must for any holiday cookie tray. Pile them on a platter next to our Almond Cookies and Meltaway Lemon Cookies for a beautiful spread.
They are perfect for cookie swaps, bake sales, and edible gifts. Box them up with Crispy Peanut Butter Cookies and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies for a homemade gift.
Serve them with coffee, hot cocoa, or a cold glass of milk. For more easy from-scratch sweets, try our Cream Cheese Cookies next.
Thumbprint Cookies FAQs
A little cracking is normal and part of their charm, but heavy cracking usually means the dough was too cold or dry. Let the chilled dough sit a couple of minutes before rolling, and press the thumbprint gently to minimize splits.
Yes. The dough can be made and chilled up to 2 days ahead, or you can freeze the baked, unfilled cookies for up to 3 months. Fill them with ganache the day you plan to serve for the freshest look.
Beyond white chocolate ganache, classic options include raspberry, strawberry, or apricot jam, chocolate ganache, lemon curd, caramel, or Nutella. Just add the filling after baking so it stays glossy.
Keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. If filled with jam or ganache, layer them with parchment so they do not stick together.
Freeze the baked, unfilled cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, then fill with fresh ganache or jam before serving.
Spreading happens when the dough is too warm or the butter was melted instead of softened. Chill the dough fully, and if your kitchen is hot, chill the rolled balls again for 10 minutes before baking.
Building a cookie tray? Add our Lemon Sandwich Cookies next.
You will also love our orange creamsicle cookies with white chocolate chips.
For another easy classic, whip up a batch of melt in your mouth meringue cookies.
Love simple cookies? These puff pastry palmiers come together in under 30 minutes.
Round out your cookie tray with these chewy chocolate chip cookies.
These are great alongside our 5-minute no-bake granola bars.
White Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Cookies
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch kosher salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick) softened
- 3 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 3/4 cup powdered sugar divided
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
White Chocolate Ganache
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 7 ounces sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
Cream Cheese Cookies
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth with a hand mixer. Add 1 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar and mix until combined. Add the egg and vanilla, mix until combined.
- Slowly add the flour mixture to bowl a little at a time until fully mixed. Place bowl in the fridge for one hour to chill.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add the remaining powdered sugar to a small bowl. Roll cookie dough into 1 tablespoon sized balls by hand. Roll in the powdered sugar and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 3 inches apart.
- Using something that is small and round, like a teaspoon or a utensil with a round stick, make small indentions right on the top of each cookie. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the bottom of the cookies start to get slightly browned.
- Take out of the oven, let cool on the tray for 10 minutes, place onto a wired rack to cool completely.
White Chocolate Ganache
- While the cookies are cooling, make the ganache by placing all the ingredients into a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in microwave on high for 1 minute. Let sit one minute and stir until smooth, heat an additional 30 seconds if the mixture is not smooth after stirring for a minute or so.
- Fill cookie indentions with white chocolate ganache, top with sprinkles if desired.
Notes
- Easily double this recipe for larger gatherings or gifts.
- You can switch out the chocolate flavor if you’d like.
- Sprinkles are optional but a fun addition to these cookies.
- These can be frozen, see my tips above.
- Vanilla bean paste can be swapped with vanilla extract 1:1.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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Either way works!
You say these can be frozen, but should they be frozen without the ganache filling or can they be frozen with the filling?
Hi Dana,
Thank you for such delicious and beautiful cookies!
I think Connie was referring to the following part of your post:
“DO YOU FILL THUMBPRINT COOKIES BEFORE OR AFTER BAKING?
These will be filled after baking. You won’t make the indentations in the cookies until after baking.”
Thanks again.
I looked through the whole post, I only see it mentioned to make the indention before baking, then you add the ganache into the indention after they have cooled.
In your notes you say to make the indentation after the cookies are baked, but in the recipe instructions you say to make the indentation before baking. Does it make a difference? Can’t wait to try them.
I’m sorry no, the ganache will never set hardened. I suggest getting white chocolate almond bark (use a little coconut oil, like 1 teaspoon at a time if the bark is too thick to your liking to thin it out) and melting that down to use instead. They will still be just as pretty and yummy, but will harden like normal chocolate. 🙂
Does the white chocolate harden enough to stack these cookies. I’d like to make them for a wedding. 🙂. Beautiful.
those shimmery sprinkles are perfection! love these cookies!
I have some red thumbprint cookies I am making for Valentines day… Im going to make these to accompany them! They are adorable!
Wow! Thank you so much for sharing recipe. I just love white chocolate thumbprint cookies. Keep sharing yammmmy recipes. 🙂