Nutella-Filled Coconut Thumbprint Cookies
Think shortbread cookies-turned-macaroons, with sweet, toasted coconut on the outside and a dollop of Nutella in the middle for a nutty chocolate twist.
- Cook Time: 20 hours
- Total Time: 20 hours
- Yield: 32 cookies 1x
Ingredients
Scale
Dough
- 14 7/8 ounces (3 1/2 cups, spoon and level) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 12 ounces (1 1/2 cups or 3 sticks) salted butter
- 3 3/4 ounces (1/2 cup, packed) brown sugar
- 3 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Glazing and Rolling
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 6 3/8 oz (1 1/2 cups) sweetened shredded coconut
Filling and Sprinkling
- Nutella
- sparkling sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a bowl and handheld electric mixer), cream together the butter and sugars until fluffy. Wipe down bowl and beater and beat in vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients to wet and mix in on lowest speed until mostly incorporated. Finish folding in by hand, just until all ingredients are evenly combined.
- Transfer dough to a large piece of plastic wrap and flatten into a disc. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF with oven racks in the top and bottom-third positions. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Whisk egg and water together for egg wash.
- Pull off chunks of dough and roll into 1-ounce (about 1 1/4”) balls. One by one, dip each ball into egg wash and then roll in coconut to coat. Transfer to baking sheet and press an indentation into the center with your thumb.
- Bake cookies in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until coconut is golden-brown, flipping and rotating trays halfway through baking time. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes (more is fine) before adding Nutella. If thumbprint indentations have puffed up during baking, gently press down again while cookies are still warm.
- Spoon a small amount of Nutella into the center of each cookie and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.*
Notes
*If desired, you can store the cookies unfilled and add the Nutella and sprinkles just before serving. This will make them easier to store since you can then stack them.
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten via Food Network
