Get ready to impress with this easy Turtle Thumbprint Cookies recipe! Decadent chocolate cookies rolled in pecans and filled with soft caramel make any cookie tray look extra special! Perfect for the holidays!
Looking for more delicious cookie recipes? Make sure to try my Linzer Cookies, Thumbprint Cookies and Whipped Shortbread Cookies!
I am seriously in the cookie making mood lately. Bryce got a beagle cookie jar for his birthday and he’s been asking to fill it up almost every day. We have so many cookies recipe that we love to make but these Turtle Thumbprint cookies are something special.
Not only are they gorgeous and oh-so delicious, but the boys love to help make them!
This recipe is terrific in that you can have little helpers for almost every step and that can’t really mess anything up 🙂 The cookies are just beautiful and would be perfect to bring to any party this holiday season and simple enough that you can easily make up a batch for your family any night of the week. I love the classic “turtle”combination of caramel, pecans, and chocolate – it just doesn’t get any better than this!
Their favorite part is making the indentions in the cookie dough. Now, f you have a helper with smaller fingers, you may want to secretly use your thumb or else there won’t be a lot of room for the caramel and that, my friends, would be a catastrophe.
Aren’t these the prettiest cookies EVER??? And by the way, these cookies aren’t just pretty on the outside, they’re quite yummy on the inside 🙂
More Christmas Cookies To Try
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Stained Glass Cookies
- Grinch Cookies
- Whipped Shortbread Cookies
- Peppermint Snowball Cookies
Turtle Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 egg divided
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 16 caramels
- 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 1¼ cups chopped pecans
- 1 teaspoon shortening
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Beat butter with an electric mixer for 30 seconds. Add sugar and continue beating until combined and creamy. Add egg yolk, milk, and vanilla and beat until well combined.
- Sift flour, cocoa powder, and salt together in a separate bowl. Add flour mixture to the butter mixture a little at a time {trying to avoid a cocoa cloud – quite messy!} and beat until well combined.
- Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap and chill for a couple hours.
- Chop the pecans pretty fine…
- Heat unwrapped caramels and whipping cream in a small saucepan over low heat until nice and smooth.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Shape the dough into 1-inch balls and roll the balls in slightly beaten egg white. Then roll in pecans until coated. Reece did an entire tray all by himself and he's six. Bryce's balls were not exactly round per se, but who cares!
- Place balls on a lightly greased cookie sheet about one inch apart. Use your thumb to press in the center, making an indention.
- If you have a helper with smaller fingers, you may want to secretly use your thumb or else there won’t be a lot of room for the caramel and that, my friends, would be a catastrophe.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until edges are set. If the indention has disappeared during baking, use a measuring spoon to re-create the indention.
- Spoon caramel mixture into the center of the cookies and remove to a wire rack and let cool. {If the caramel has thickened too much, just reheat on low until it reaches a thinner consistency.}
- Be careful not to overfill the cookies…
- Once the cookies have cooled, melt chocolate chips and shortening in microwave by heating in 15 second intervals, stirring in between.
- Drizzle the chocolate over the tops of the cookies and get ready to enjoy!
Nutrition
Some of my favorite cookie recipes:
Reese’s Freezer-Friendly Oatmeal Cookies
For all appetizer recipes, go HERE.
For all dessert recipes, go HERE.
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Have a great day!
Claire @ A Little Claireification says
OhhhhhhMyGosh these look divine!! I must try these as soon as possible. I found you at Whipper Berry’s Friday party and I am going to like your FB page so I don’t miss updates like these (that will inevitably be detrimental to my waistline). Hope you can stop by or show some FB love if you have a chance! And I am SOOOO going to be a “Mom in Time Out” when I make these and hoard them and don’t share with my 3 boys. #backofftheyreALLmine
Thanks for the great post!
– Claire
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thanks Claire! Stopped by and gave you some Facebook love 😉
Megan says
Those look fantastic!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thanks Megan – they’re super yummy!
BarbaraLee says
I am bringing this for our family Christmas.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yay! That just made me so happy! Thanks for letting me know Barbara!
Maria says
Oh wow these look AMAZING!!!! I am pinning them so I can remember to try them over the holidays! They look fantastic!!!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thank you Maria! You really must try these cookies – soooo good!
Cathy says
wow! these look amazing! i’ll save this recipe for when i am on winter break. i’m sure they will be a hit with everyone. thanks for sharing : )
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
You are so welcome Cathy! Have a great week!
Bryn says
What is the texture of the caramel like after it sets? Does it harden and become too difficult for little ones to chew, or stay soft? Thanks! They look delicious.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Very soft – almost a liquid but not. Perfect for little ones and trust me, the caramel is the best part! Thanks for stopping by Bryn!
Jessi @ Practically Functional says
Oh my gosh those look amazing! Thanks for sharing at The Fun In Functional!
thepaintedapron.com says
Those are fabulous, definitely on my to do list for December, probably for my Goodie Swap! Thanks for sharing and I love that your 2 precious guys pitched in.
Jenna
Ronja says
Wonderful recipe and just perfect to make it with the kids. Love that and I pretty sure they loved it too!
Chrissy Jordan says
I am drooling right now! Yum! I hope you don’t mind that I pinned this to my food board. 🙂
I would love it if you would link this up over at F-it Fridays!
http://www.parloandlogi.com/
Sarah says
These are gorgeous! And I’m sure delicious. Great idea for those holiday cookie exchanges! Pinning. Visiting from Barns & Noodles.
Evelyn says
Just pinned!!! These are just above the hook!!
Anonymous says
About how many did does the recipe make?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
About 2 1/2 dozen. If you don’t have two little ones munching on the dough – maybe 3 dozen 🙂
Kelli S says
Not only do these look super yum AND incredibly fall-ish (I can totally see them on a Thanksgiving dessert table), but I love that small children can help. My daughter loves to cook with me and the more recipes I can have lined up with things for her to do, the better. She gets very disappointed when the most she can do is eat the result! Thanks for sharing!
Nicole @WonkyW says
These look super tasty! I have been eating far too much caramel lately.