Almond Raspberry Thumbprints by Barbara
My dad made thumbprint cookies every year at Christmastime. Developing this recipe brought back good memories from my childhood. I started with his recipe -- it's from the 1960's --- and modified it to make a modern version. I substituted butter for the shortening, made them with almonds instead of pecans, and added almond flour and almond extract. We used a jar of Greaves raspberry jam from our trip to Niagara-on-the-Lake for our anniversary earlier this year. That area around Ontario Lake grows excellent fruit. Their jams are out of this world.
Tom and I made them together on Christmas Eve morning. We formed an assembly line. They were fun but messy to make. We had to re-press the thumbprint when they came out of the oven, but other than that, they were pretty easy to make, just a lot of steps. We were going to make only one cookie this year, so it had to be special. It was an excellent addition to our repertoire of Christmas cookies in the Cookie Jar. We will definitely make them again. 
---Barbara
Almond Raspberry Thumbprints
Makes 60 cookies
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, very soft
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. light brown sugar
2 eggs, separated (yolks will go in batter, whites are used for coating)
3/4 t. vanilla extract
1/4 t. almond extract
1/2 t. salt plus more for the nuts
1 c. almond flour, sifted, all lumps removed (Bob's Red Mill)
2 c. flour, sifted
1.5 to 2 cups freshly ground almonds
about 1 cup slivered almonds for garnish
3/4 cup (250 ml) raspberry jam
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Separate the eggs.
In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat together the butter and the sugars until light and smooth.
Add the extracts to the egg yolks, then add them to the mixer and combine well.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flours, being sure to remove any lumps in the almond flour. Don't skip this step. Add the salt and whisk together.
A little at a time, add the flour to the mixer until it comes together into a dough that does not hug the edges of the mixing bowl.
Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.
Add a pinch of salt, then grind the almonds in a food processor and place them in a shallow wide bowl.
Froth the eggs whites using a whisk, and place them in a shallow wide bowl.
Place the slivered almonds and tosh with a pinch of salt in another small bowl.
When it's time to make the cookies, set up the assembly line.
Scoop out 1 inch balls of dough, roll them around in your hands to make a ball.
Dip the ball in the egg whites, then roll it around in the ground nuts.
Place each ball on the parchment paper on the cookie sheet and press it down with your thumb. Make a deep well. And if it cracks, then squish it back together with your fingers.
Add slivers of almonds and press them into the sides of the cookies.
Place 12 balls per cookie sheet and leave plenty of space in between them.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes --- we checked at 12 and baked for 2 more minutes -- until they started to brown on the edges.
Take them out of the oven, then re-press the well. We used the back of a cookie scoop. You could use the back of a measuring spoon or a melon baller.
Let them cool for about 5-10 minutes, then remove to a rack to finish cooling.
Then fill with 1/2 t. jam.
Store in a tightly covered tin.
Delicious, especially on the first day.
---Barbara
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