Honey-Roasted Peanut Thumbprints
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich in cookie form, these nostalgic treats are just as appealing to grown-ups as they are to kids. Using a combination of honey-roasted and salted peanuts gives them a sweet-salty complexity, while a shot of citrus zest adds brightness. Feel free to substitute other jam flavors for Concord grape. But don’t use jelly: It’s too thin and will melt right out of the cookies as they bake.
- Total:
- Serves: 3 persons
Ingredients
- 1 ⅔cups/230 grams chopped honey-roasted peanuts
- 2cups/250 grams all-purpose flour
- ½cup/110 grams dark brown sugar
- ½teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1cup/225 grams unsalted butter (2 sticks), cold and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2large eggs, separated
- 1tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½teaspoons lemon or orange zest
- ⅔cup/95 grams chopped salted, roasted peanuts (or use more honey-roasted peanuts)
- About 1/2 cup/160 grams Concord grape jam (or other thick jam)
Instructions
Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly grease them.Step 2
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together 1 cup peanuts and 1/2 cup flour until the nuts are coarsely ground. Pulse in remaining flour, sugar, salt and nutmeg, then add the butter and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Pulse in the egg yolks, vanilla extract and zest. Continue to pulse until the dough is well combined and starts to clump (but doesn’t form a ball).Step 3
Working with 1 tablespoon of dough at a time, form the mixture into 1-inch balls.Step 4
Put the egg whites in a shallow bowl, then beat them lightly with a fork until frothy. Put the remaining 2/3 cup chopped honey-roasted peanuts in another shallow bowl, and stir in the salted, roasted peanuts.Step 5
Dunk each ball of dough first in egg whites, then in the nuts, rolling to coat the balls well. Place the balls on the baking sheets 2 inches apart. Using your thumb, press an indentation in the center of each round of dough.Step 6
Using a small spoon (an espresso spoon works well), fill the indentations with jam. Bake until the edges of the cookies are just golden, 12 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.