Sweetheart Cookies For Loved Ones Recipes

SWEETHEART THUMBPRINT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350˚F. Beat butter with confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and salt until thoroughly combined, about 1 minute. Beat in flour until a dough forms.
• Roll level tablespoons of dough into balls; arrange 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Using the end of the handle of a flat-bottomed eating utensil or rubber spatula, press two deep indentations into the center of each ball to create a V (it will expand during baking to become a heart).
• Bake until bottoms are golden and cookies are just set, 17 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together sanding sugar and a tiny pinch of luster dust. In a small bowl, beat egg white with 1 teaspoon water. Working with a few cookies at a time, brush tops with egg wash and sprinkle generously with sanding-sugar mixture.
• Return to oven and bake until egg wash is dry and sugar has set, about 1 minute. Let cookies cool 5 minutes on sheets, then transfer to wire racks and let cool completely.
• In a small saucepan, bring jam to a boil. Press through a fine-mesh strainer; discard solids. Spoon into heart indentations (about 1/2 teaspoon per cookie), or transfer heated jam to squeeze bottles for more precision. Let jam set completely before serving. (Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days.)

SWEETHEART COCONUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Place coconut and sugar in a food processor; cover and process until coconut is coarsely chopped. In a large bowl, cut butter into flour until crumbly. Stir in coconut mixture. Stir in eggs and vanilla., On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a 2-1/2-in. heart-shaped cookie cutter dipped in flour. Using a 1-in. heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out the center of half of the cookies. Reroll small cutouts if desired. , Place solid and cutout cookies 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 7-9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks., In a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, water and vanilla; brush over warm cookies with cutout centers. Immediately sprinkle with coarse white sugar if desired. Spread 1/2 teaspoon of jam over the bottom of each solid cookie; place cookies with cutout centers over jam.