Eggnog Thumbprints

Good morning! I hope you guys all had a lovely holiday weekend! Mine was packed full of stuff to do, and I am EXHAUSTED. Wouldn't change it one bit, though. =]

I ended up making 4 kinds of Christmas cookies this year, and baking from 9-9 on Friday to finish them all. Everyone loved them, and we've only got a few left of each to share with friends we didn't get a chance to see over the weekend.

These thumbprint cookies are SO GOOD if you're an eggnog lover like myself. I got the recipe from Allrecipes, but used another eggnog frosting recipe since the original had no actual eggnog in it.

Cookie dough. I've been so scatterbrained the past few days that I did not get a good step-by step for these cookies. I added a teaspoon of nutmeg to the dough for more eggnog flavor.

Dough rolled into 1-inch balls.

Since I have long fingernails, I indented the dough balls with the end of a thick-handled butterknife.

Right from the oven.

Frosted, waiting for the frosting to set up on my new 4-tiered platter set.

I topped them with little peppermint-flavored candy cane sprinkles.

Eggnog Thumbprints Recipe (from Allrecipes)

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, cream together 3/4 cup butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour and salt; stir into the creamed mixture by hand to form a soft dough. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Make an indention in the center of each cookie using your finger or thumb.
3. Bake for 12 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.
4. In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, and rum. Spoon rounded teaspoonfuls of filling onto cookies. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Let stand until set before storing in an airtight container.

Eggnog Frosting

• 1 stick (8 tbsp.) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• pinch ground cinnamon
• pinch kosher salt
• 1/4 c. eggnog
• 1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

In a medium mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream the butter on medium speed until fluffy and light in color. Add the powdered sugar and continue to mix until it is well incorporated. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until frosting is very airy and thoroughly mixed, about 2 minutes. Use immediately to frost cookies or cupcakes, or store covered in the refrigerator until ready to use.