Thumbprint Cookies

Once upon a time I was roommates with one of my cousins, B.  Then she got married to L.  Then I moved in with B's brother, F's girlfriend, C.  Then they got married.  (It was the thing to do back then - I got married the next year myself.) We girls used to cook and share recipes and this one is from C.  I have made it a lot over the years. These cookies can look very different depending on whether you roll them in sprinkles (what color?), chopped nuts (walnuts? pecans?) or not at all.  If you use colored sprinkles and match the frosting you have beautiful cookies for any holiday or shower (remember the wedding theme from before? Babies eventually came too, so this recipe has been very popular☺).  The possibilities are numerous.  Below are a few pictures of cookies I made from one recipe - the reality is I ran out of chocolate sprinkles so I decided to put lemon curd in some. See what happens once you start opening your cupboards and your imagination?

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg, separated
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
Sprinkles or Chopped Nuts

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Add egg yolk and vanilla. Add in flour and salt. Chill dough for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375°F. Shape dough into 1" balls, dip in slightly beaten egg white and sprinkles or nuts. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Poke hole in center with thumb. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Fill with frosting or jam.