Name: Maple Thumbprint Cookies
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup, room temperature); ⅔ cup granulated sugar; 2 egg yolks; 1 tablespoon maple extract; 1 teaspoon salt; 2 cups all purpose flour; 2 cups powdered sugar; ¼ cup maple syrup; 2-4 tablespoons water

These Maple Thumbprint Sugar Cookies are such a tasty sweet treat for the holidays! The cookies and icing are easy to make and everyone loves them!

cookies displayed on brown parchment paper.

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cookies lined up on brown parchment paper with icing drizzled.

If you're a maple lover like I am, then these cookies are for you! Maple is such a comforting flavor to me. It reminds me of breakfast on cool fall and winter mornings or these yummy maple candies from my childhood.

They're simple to make, sweet and such a perfect cookie for fall, Thanksgiving or Christmas. If you have a bake sale coming up, they're great for that too since they're so unique.

The dough is a maple flavored sugar sugar cookie and the icing is maple flavored as well. They bake up quick and after they're cooled, you can fill the thumbprint impression with the yummy icing.

The edges are slightly crisp, and the center is soft. The icing is the perfect touch.

Anytime we make these cookies, they disappear so fast! They are truly the ultimate fall cookie!

Keep scrolling for tips, process photos, additional holiday cookie recipes and more!

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What are the ingredients in this recipe?

recipe ingredients displayed on a blue and white striped cloth.

unsalted butter
granulated sugar
egg yolks
maple extract
salt
all purpose flour
powdered sugar
maple syrup
water

How to make:

collage of recipe making process photos.

2nd collage of recipe making process photos.

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Scroll down to the printable recipe card for measurements and instructions!

Recipe tips:

Don’t overfill the thumbprint impressions. The icing will settle on its own and may look like more than you realize when filling.

Use a toothpick to adjust the icing into place, if need be. I used it to ensure the edges were all filled in to get that pretty and perfect circle.

If you don’t want to use your thumb, you can use a ¼ teaspoon (the back of it) to make the impressions in the dough.

If you want larger cookies, but be sure to adjust the baking time. These cookies are about 2 inches in size.

Be sure to make your impression deep enough as it will rise just a touch during the baking process and might disappear if made too shallow.

Make sure to use real maple syrup and not pancake syrup.

If you don't have piping bags, you can use a ziploc bag and snip off the corner.

hand holding a cookie over brown parchment paper background.

More holiday cookie recipes you might like:

You can add or substitute with these ingredients:

sprinkle chopped nuts on top if the icing
use vanilla extract in the dough instead of maple
skip making the thumbprint and drizzle the icing over top instead

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cookies lined up on brown parchment paper background.

Our favorite kitchen supplies used with this recipe:

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!

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close up of cookies on brown parchment paper.

Yield 36 cookies

Author Hot Eats and Cool Reads

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

10 Min

Total time

25 Min

Maple Thumbprint Cookies

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup, room temperature)
⅔ cup granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon maple extract
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup maple syrup
2-4 tablespoons water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Using a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until nice and fluffy (about 1-2 minutes).
Add the egg yolks, extract, and salt and beat the mixture again for about another 30 seconds or until fully combined.
Add in the flour and beat the mixture until it turns to big crumbs. Switch to your hands at this point and knead together the mixture until it’s easily rolled into a ball.
Take about a tablespoon worth of dough and roll it into a ball. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet, half an inch apart.
Using your thumb, make a deep impression in the middle of each ball.
Bake for 10 minutes or until very lightly browned on the bottom.
Remove the cookies from the oven and let them fully cool.
In a medium bowl, combine the powdered sugar, syrup, and 2 tablespoons of water. Mix well. It will be thick. If it’s too thick to stir, add a bit more water until you can stir it with little resistance.
Place the icing in a piping bag and use scissors to snip a small tip off the end of the bag.
Fill in each cookie impression with the icing by starting in the middle and filling in the edges with a circular motion.
Allow the cookies to sit for a few minutes so the icing can dry or eat right away.

Notes

Don’t overfill the impressions. The icing will settle on its own and may look like more than you realize when filling.

Use a toothpick to adjust the icing into place, if need be. I used it to ensure the edges were all filled in to get that pretty and perfect circle.

If you don’t want to use your thumb, you can use a ¼ teaspoon (the back of it) to make the impressions in the dough.

If you want larger cookies, but be sure to adjust the baking time. These cookies are about 2 inches in size.

Be sure to make your impression deep enough as it will rise just a touch during the baking process and might disappear if made too shallow.

Make sure to use real maple syrup and not pancake syrup.

If you don't have piping bags, you can use a ziploc bag and snip off the corner.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

119.74

Fat

5.43

Sat. Fat

3.33

Carbs

17.19

Fiber

0.19

Net carbs

Sugar

11.59

Protein

0.93

Sodium

66.34

Cholesterol

24.3

Hot Eats and Cool Reads is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe you try from this blog/website. You may not always have the same results I do due to variations in ingredients, humidity, altitude, cooking temperatures, typos, errors, omissions, or individual cooking abilities.

You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful. I am not a certified nutritionist and make no claims to the contrary. Each individual's dietary needs and restrictions are unique to the individual.