Thumbprint Cookies

HERSHEY'S Mini-Kisses Thumbprint Cookies

        1 Cup butter or margarine, softened
       1 1/3 Cups sugar
       2 egg yolks
       1/4 Cup milk
       2 teaspoons vanilla extract
       2 Cups all-purpose flour
       2/3 Cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
       1/2 teaspoon salt
       1 Can vanilla cake frosting
        Green and red food color
        HERSHEY'S MINI KISSES Semi-Sweet Baking Pieces

        Beat sugar, egg yolks, milk, butter and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine dry ingredients and stir into the batter - add slowly, ad some, mix, add more, mix, etc. Mix until well-blended. Chill dough 2 hours or until firm enough to handle.

        HINT: Mix the Cocoa and sugar together first then add the rest of the dry ingredients.

        Roll into 1 1/8-inch balls and dip into sugar. Place on a cookie sheet and press your thumb into the center. (Hence the name.)

        Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and cool 10 minutes.

        To be festive - divide frosting into three pieces. Color one part red, one part green and leave the other white.

        Ice cookies with frosting and press three MINI KISSES into the frosting on each cookie.

HERSHEY'S Mini-Kisses Thumbprint Almond Cookies

        Same as above except roll the dough balls in egg white (for glue) and chopped almonds instead of sugar.

Peanut Blossoms

        This is from the 1957 Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. We always called these thumbprint cookies at home.

        1/2 Cup butter or margarine, softened or Crisco shortening
      1/2 Cup peanut butter
       1/2 Cups firmly packed brown sugar
       1 egg
       2 tablespoons milk
       1 teaspoon vanilla extract
       1/2 teaspoon salt
      1 teaspoon baking soda
       
       48 Milk Chocolate candy Kisses

        Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together all ingredients except the kisses and beat at low speed or by hand. Dough will be stiff. Shape into 1-inch balls and roll in white sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Immediately press a candy into the hot cookie, pressing down firmly - cracking the cookie around the edges.

        To same time I have made these with the Kisses installed before baking - this makes a lethally hot candy cookie that MUST be cooled before little fingers get it. Big mouths too. Does odd things to the chocolate. Very good.