Chocolate Sprinkle Thumbprint Cookies
Raise your hand if ever in your life you have struggled with a recipe. My hand is waaaaaay up there (well, as high up as it can get when you’re only 5’1). Sometimes it’s cupcake batter that runneth over and spills all over the inside of the oven. Sometimes it’s a cake that ends up looking like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Sometimes it’s an experiment gone terribly (and inedible-y) awry. Sometimes it’s trying to recreate a favorite treat from a restaurant or bakery and you just.can’t.get.it.right. These have all happened to me (some, many times over!), but today, I’m focusing on that last one – recreating a favorite treat. Here in Pittsburgh, Giant Eagle is our large supermarket chain, and their bakery sells the most addicting cookies ever – Chocolate Thumbprints with Sprinkles.
These are, without question, my Chief Culinary Consultant’s favorite store-bought cookie and he has done a fabulous job of getting me completely addicted to them. Approximately one out of every two times we wander into the grocery store, we wander out with a dozen of those cookies. Then, we promptly polish them off in less time than I care to admit. For the longest time, I have been trying to recreate those little devils, and I’ve finally got something close!
The cookies from Giant Eagle are not crispy, but they’re not soft or chewy either; rather, they’re very tender. They crumble a little bit when you bite into them, but then they have some give. The cookie is only the first part of the equation; once we get past that part, it’s figuring out the frosting. To be quite honest, it tastes pretty much like chocolate frosting from a can, which normally I’m all “bleh” about, but oh my, on these cookies… I want to swim in it. Turns out, it’s pretty darn difficult to try to make frosting from scratch that tastes like frosting from a can. Shocking, right? I think that’s probably a good thing, but doesn’t make it any easier!
I have gone through no less than four or five iterations of these cookies, two batches of which needed to be thrown out when experiments went awry! I’ve played with different ingredients, ratios, and mixing methods and have taken copious amounts of notes on pretty much every thumbprint recipe known to man.
These babies are my pseudo-final (but-still-a-work-in-progress) version of the ever-famous Giant Eagle Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies. They are close, but I’m dying to get it as close to exact as possible. The recipe, of course, is a “Giant Eagle bakery secret” so I’m on my own! If I make any changes to the recipe below in the future, I’ll add a date and an edit note so you know what’s been changed.
What recipes have left you stumped? Or scrubbing your kitchen from top to bottom? ;-)
One year ago: Fresh Strawberry Pie
Chocolate Sprinkle Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
- 2½ cups (312.5 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Chocolate sprinkles
For the Chocolate Icing:
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (180 g) powdered sugar
- â…“ cup (28.67 g) Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 4 tablespoons whole milk
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt; set aside. Pour the chocolate sprinkles into a small bowl; set aside.
- Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream together the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture. Once it is mostly incorporated, slowly increase the speed back to medium-high and beat for another minute or so until a dough forms.
- Scoop out a tablespoon of dough, roll it into a ball, and then roll it in the chocolate sprinkles and place it on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing your cookies about 1½ inches apart on the baking sheet. Make a slight indentation with your thumb (or the back of a melon baller - my favorite tool for this task) on the tops of all the cookies. Bake for 10 minutes, then make a deeper indentation in the middle, and bake for an additional 8 minutes. The cookies should not brown much at all around the edges. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the chocolate icing for the filling. Beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 2 to 3 minutes, or until light and creamy. Reduce speed to low, add the powdered sugar and cocoa powder and mix until combined, then increase the speed to medium and beat until smooth. Add the milk and the vanilla extract and beat until light and fluffy. Add more powdered sugar or milk to achieve the desired consistency.
- Once the cookies are cool, pipe some frosting into the middle of each cookie (or you can spoon it in). Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Frigidaire. When you share your own do-over moment at Facebook.com/Frigidaire, Frigidaire will donate $1 to Save the Children’s U.S. programs. Plus, Frigidaire will help cover the costs for one lucky visitor to win the ultimate do-over.[/donotprint]
Have you tried freezing them?
Can’t wait to try these!! They were my favorite growing up!! Oakmont Bakery has some very similar!!Â
Hello
Yes I made these for 2 of my kids wedding cookie table. They are sooo delicious 😋 Taste like Giant Eagles . One of our grocery stores!
This is our absolute favorite Christmas cookie. I think we made four batches this year!Â
This recipe is gold! As a lifelong Pittsburgher, and former Giant Eagle employee, in my opinion this is the best cookie recipe ever! It tastes almost identical to GE, only better.
Hi Michelle,
I love your recipes and have followed you for years, when it was just you and your Chief Culinary Consultant! I was searching through your cookie recipes, and I came across this one from June 14, 2012. I was intrigued because I had never heard of these cookies before, so when I came across this recipe, while googling for “Giant Eagle Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies with Sprinkles”, I thought you’d want to see it, so here it is! Merry Christmas to you and your beautiful family!!
https://www.heritagecookies.net/index.php/tag/giant-eagle-thumbprints/
I just made these cookies and they are so crunchy!!! I think an egg is needed. Thanks for the recipe though!!
I think this recipe is missing an egg. I made them and the dough was very dry.Â
I love these! They were so good that I couldn’t stop eating them! Time to make so more! Haha
I’m making these for the first time. I’m in love with GE thumbprint cookies since I was a little girl. I added a 1/2 cup of cornstarch, tsp of almond extract, and an egg, scrapping down sides of mixer. Consistency is like playdoh. To help Jimmie’s stick wet hands slightly and roll.  Make thumbprint prior to bakin with a back of baby spoon. Bake 11 min@ 350- I also cheated and used Pillsbury chocolate fudge icing!  Nailed it. Can omit almond extract or use less.Â
Hi,
I will be trying this recipe for the holidays. My boys love these cookies and you can’t find them in Florida. Do you have a recipe for the Butter Star Cookies that Oakmont bakery makes.
Thanks so much
I too LOVED those cookies from Giant Eagle. I found this recipe last year and tried it and YES they are great and brought back past memories of when I lived in PA and shopped at Giant Eagle and bought them. One thing though about these cookies, the sprinkles didn’t want to stick very well around the sides of the cookie, besides that they were fantastic!!!
Curious… can you make this dough ahead of time?Â
Just finished a batch of these for my daughter’s wedding reception cookie table. Â They were easy enough to make, so I don’t believe I did anything wrong. Â But I have to agree with others that they were rather hard and not tender as stated in the blog. Â I baked them according to the time specified in the recipe, first for 10 minutes and then another 8 after making the indent deeper. Â Now that I see how hard they are, I am thinking a total of 18 minutes baking was too long even though they are not burnt. Â Sitting here trying to decide if I really want these placed on the cookie table . . . .
I couldn’t get my dough to come together. I added an egg, 1tbs. milk, and 2 tbs. of butter then baked for 10 minutes. Then they turned out like the photos.
without any egg?
I think these cookies taste delightful. Â It is my new favorite recipe. Â I grew up in Lower Burrell, PA and we bought these at Princess Pastries. Takes me back to a more simple time. Â
My new favorite cookie. For Easter, I used rainbow sprinkles and vanilla butter cream. Delicious.
I had to laugh about your description of these cookies. Giant Eagle is the grocery store I always shop at, however both locations I normally go to being the Waterfront Giant Eagle & the Kennywood Giant Eagle, I have never seen these cookies. Yesterday I was in Squirrel Hill and stopped at that Giant Eagle to pick up a few items and I seen these Thumbprint Chocolate Sprinkle cookies. Anything chocolate with jimmies is something that’s definitely going into my cart! I’m on day 2 of polishing off the entire container of cookies. Your explanation of the cookie dough is spot on. I’m sure if you never had these the description will leave you a bit confused, but I knew exactly what you meant. I love baking so I immediately went online looking for this recipe. I was so excited when the pictures of your cookies popped up. There are no other cookies from my search that even look close to the Giant Eagle cookies. I’m so thankful you took so much time to try and duplicate their recipe. I’m going to try it over the weekend. Now how about figuring out the Whipped Cream Icing recipe that either Giant Eagle or Shop n Save use. It’s definitely not just heavy cream and powdered sugar or with vanilla. I don’t know what the ingredients are but I haven’t found a Whipped Cream recipe that even comes close. Thank you for the Thunbprint recipe! Cheers!!
The thumbprint cookies at the Giant Eagle in Squirrel Hill are kosher/pareve and imo they’re so much better than the ones with dairy, I don’t know why! I tried this recipe before and it was great but not quite what I was looking for, so I’ve been meaning to try it again with crisco instead of butter.
Carrie… Ha ha I read your post about thumbprint cookies and I was also thinking how I would love to figure out the Sbarro’s in Bridgeville Shop n Save icing recipe! Of course they are now GE and have changed their whipped buttercream but man was it delicious!
I live in the state of Indiana for the last 30 years but some Pittsburgh things stay with you forever!
I made these and I had a difficult time having the jimmies stick to the  side of the dough! If any jimmies go underneath the cookie they burn ! I baked for the suggested times in a brand new electric oven they are too crunchy not what I expected!  Oh well I’ll stick to my 35 year old thumbprint recipe as they come out perfect every time Thanks though it was enjoyable trying a new recipeÂ
I live in Pittsburgh too and love thumbprints!! The ones that they used to sell at Kaufman’s downtown were also delicious. I just made yours. So good!
I remember these cookies long before Giant Eagle.  Kaufmann’s Department store had a bakery on the Mezzanine level where you could purchase these.  Love them!  I used low water butter and so had to add a few tablespoons of it to get this to come together as a dough.  Thanks for the memories!
My daughter and I LOVE this cookie. We’ve never had a problem with the recipe. It is a very pretty cookie. If you can get European Dark Chocolate Sprinkles (I use DeRuijter) all the better.
Cookies spread very thin and so crumbly my kids can’t pick them up. I think this recipe needs more flour.Â
or egg?
Hi I MADE THE THUMB PRINT COOKIES BUT THE MIXTURE WAS DRY WHEN IT CAN TO MAKING THEM INTO THE BALLS. ANYSUGGESTIONS ALSO HOW DO YOU GET THE SPRINKLES TO STICK IF THE MIXTURE IS DRY. THANK YOU
I bake literally every day. The dough never formed. Only course crumbles and the sprinkles didn’t stick to the cookie. Â There’s only 5 ingredients and I didn’t even use salt because I used salted butter. I can’t figure out what the issue is. Should it just be 2 cups of flour?
Cookie was good but icing was really thin – definitely too thin to be piped. I made a chocolate buttercream instead.
I’ve made tons of desserts following your recipes and they all come out amazing . this is only website i come to for recipes. but this recipe however didnt come out  that great i thought i followed everything carefully like i normally do but the cookie itself taste like dough . the icing came out perfect but something was missing in the cookie.Â
Followed your directions to a “T” resulting in a delicious cookie. Some of my guests thought I bought the cookies at the Giant Eagle the taste was so spot on. I used Penzey’s Dutch Process cocoa and the icing a a great taste. Did need to add a little milk to the icing for the desired consistency. Thanks for working so hared on this recipe.
Can you fix the photos on this page, please? :)
Hi Lisa, So sorry about that, no idea why they disappeared! I have fixed them, so you should see them now :)
GE Thumbprints are one my my favorite cookies- one of the few “store bought” I will even eat! Have you ever tried to recreate the regular icing? I’ve been trying since you posted this initially and just can’t seem to get it right. Any thoughts??
Hi Jen, I still haven’t been able to get it right… close, but not exact. It’s a serious mystery to me!
NEED to crack the code to the GE thumbprint icing!  It is like a royal icing…only better.  No matter how many blind taste  tests my husband endures, he ALWAYS picks the GE icing!  I really want that recipe!
I love Butter cream frosting, so I was wondering if I could sub butter cream
Fabulous cookie! I made both chocolate and colored sprinkles. Cookie tasted exactly as I had hoped they would, but like the previous post, I also had trouble getting the sprinkles to stick.
I made these on the weekend as part of our Christmas baking cookies. How do you get the sprinkles to stick?? I ended up rolling them in a beaten egg white so they would stick.
Elizabeth
I made these cookies and they are delicious, my whole family loved them! Although when I was making the icing, the butter, sugar and cocoa didn’t really become smooth it became more like rough sand. I just added the milk then because it was making a huge mess, but the icing still turned out great! Thanks for the recipe. :D
I made these yesterday and they are delicious!!! I shared them with friends and have passed on your website so they can make them, also. Thank you for sharing!
Hi. I just had to add to this. I’m from Pittsburgh and no longer live there, but those cookies were my weakness!! I used your recipe but instead of using 2 tsp of vanilla extract , I used just 1 tsp . Then , 1/2 tsp of almond extract and 1/2 tsp of imitation butter flavor . I also added another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, totaling 1 cup in the recipe. Now they are pretty dead on!! I used rainbow sprinkles instead and didn’t ice mine but that’s just my preference!!
Please provide your recipe…if it’s to copycat GE’s thumbprintcookies that use more of a royal icing.  Â
I am a avid baker and bake for every birthday, the birthday person gets whatever cake they want. From my father wanting a lady Baltimore the way my great grandmother made it, didn’t match what I found online. To my younger brother who loves chocolate canned frosting. For years I have tried to duplicate chocolate canned frosting with no luck. He has even asked why don’t I just give in and give him what he wants. His birthday is coming up in two weeks and I am going to try this frosting this weekend. I am praying for luck, just once I would like him to think it came out of a can. :( BTW – I just love your site and your daily emails. Everything I have tired everyone has loved, hoping for success with the frosting.
Has anyone added an egg or just a yolk to the recipe and if so….what was the result?
These look awesome! Growing up in the Pittsburgh area, these have always been a big hit in our house. I am planning on making these for Christmas…using Christmas Sprinkles and green/red buttercream icing. Question….Do they freeze well?
Thanks so much!
Hi Kelley, I have not frozen these, but I do believe that they would freeze well.
I am making these today and had to taste test the not-so-perfect ones–delicious, even without the topping! I am curious if you decided to tweak the icing recipe or if you stayed with the one you list with the recipe? Thanks for all of the great recipes!
Thanks for sharing~ I’m getting the ingredients to make these. I found a cookie glaze that might work, it looks just like the store bought picture.
2 oz chocolate chips
2 T unsalted butter
1 T corn syrup
Melt in microwave 30 secs. Stir until smooth
I’m so excited to find this recipe and try these. As a former Pittsburgher I miss the thumbprint cookies at Kaufmann’a (macy’s) and these look very similar!
I moved from Pittsburgh 10 years ago and these were always my favorite from Giant Eagle. My mom still brings them to me when she visits and buys them when we come home. I’m going to try these!
These cookies did not taste like the store brand. Cooking time was way too long and cookies were hard. Highly disappointed.
The chocolate icing from Baked’s black and white cookie recipe might work well with these:)
This recipe was perfect!! These cookies are my husband’s favorite and I just made them for his birthday. I made mine with rainbow sprinkles and used a glazed frosting instead, since that’s what he wanted. I can’t wait to try the chocolate frosting next time! They are even better (for obvious reasons) than Giant Eagle’s cookies =)
I LOVE the Giant Eagle thumbprints so I tried this recipe as soon as I found it. My dough came out really crumbly. It was so crumbly that I could roll the cookies into balls. I had to pack them into balls. I also could not get the sprinkles to stick. What did I do wrong? I thought I followed the recipe exactly . . .
Hi Jen, I’m sorry you had some trouble with the recipe. Unfortunately, due to all of the variables that can go into baking a single recipe, a lot of times it’s virtually impossible for me to pinpoint what might have caused a problem since I wasn’t there with you. I hope you’ll give them another try!
I had the exact same problem. :(. So disappointing!!
I have always loved these cookies from the bakery. Figured they were much too difficult to make. Then I stumbled onto this recipe. Tried it immediately. LOVED them! Mine were a tad bit salty; but that’s because I used salted butter. Next time I’ll use unsalted, and can’t wait for the next time. Delish! So happy to have access to this recipe (and website)!
I buy these all the time here at our Giant Eagle in Cleveland. I swear I taste a hint of cherry or almond in the cookie which is why I love them so much. Thanks for the recipe, I’m going to give it a try.
Hi Browneyedbaker! I am a Pittsburgh girl and also LOVE the Giant Eagle thumbprints, but can’t seem to recreate them. However, I made a personal discovery recently – cake flour! (used it before for cakes but not cookies) I also love the colorful “Chinese cookies” from Giant Eagle, but couldn’t find a recipe for them either. Well, recently I found a knock-off recipe for Paradise Bakery sugar cookies and they call for cake flour in lieu of all purpose. They taste damn near spot on like the Chinese cookies! Now, I’m wondering if the cake flour would make a difference in the thumbprints? It gives the cookie a crumbly, almost “flour-y” texture, yet soft, which those have. Hmmmmm. Something to think about. Also, the fudge icing on the thumbprints- can’t for the life of me recreate it! looked for a recipe everywhere, but it ends up being too “chocolate buttercream” or chocolate syrupy. Thought it would be like a ganache, but no. I’m stumped! Well, anyway, I love your recipes- keep up the good work. Happy baking!
Hi Kim, Thanks so much for the tips, I’m going to give that a try! I’ll report back :)
Kim,
I am on the hunt for a recipe for those Giant Eagle Chinese Rainbow cookies! Could you share your Paradise Bakery find that is similar? Once I have those conquered, I just need to recreate Eat n Park’s honey sauce and their ranch dressing! Then, I will be a happy Pittsburgher living in the south!
I use a recipe my mom gave me and I don’t know how the cookie compares to GE’s. It’s been a while since I’ve had one of theirs, even though I pass one everyday! The recipe I use is 1c butter, 1/2 c sugar, 1/2 c light corn syrup, 2 egg yolks and 2 1/2 c flour. I also wanted to add that one year I made a cake for my friends daughter who is allergic to dairy, soy and nuts. For the frosting I used the soy free and dairy free earth balance margarine and rice milk instead of the traditional butter and milk. It was a chocolate frosting and when I tasted it I swore it tasted like the frosting you buy. It was actually pretty very tasty. I will be trying this with my thumbprints this year.
Happy Baking!
Thank you so much for sharing! I adore Giant Eagle cookies and had missed them terribly…had to google it and came up with you…no other recipe out there comes close…this one does. Being in Florida, I can’t get my Giant Eagle and these are now the next best thing. I found the cooking time to be a bit long for my oven..so next time around shorter for me. That’s the only change I’ve made (other than doing their rainbow sprinkle and vanilla glaze version too) I’ve only shared these cookies with a few people and everyone of them has asked me for the recipe. You’ve got a winner here….can’t thank you enough.
Thank you so much for the recipe. They turned out great! I was looking for a recipe that would emulate the cookies I buy from my local Safeway. I actually think these are better! The only thing I changed was that I used a different icing recipe. Keep up the good work!
What icing did you use? I love the Safeway cookies!
Thank GOODNESS that I found your site!! I’m a PA girl living out of state trying to explain to my British husband the intricate nature of my baking roots. The stores out here do not compare and he looked at me like I was crazy when trying to explain what a chinese cookie was :)
Hi Michelle, longtime reader but first-time commenter! I just wanted to thank you so much for developing this recipe and posting about it. I am a native Pittsburgher now living in Wisconsin and this post brought back SO many wonderful memories! I just baked up a batch and oh, they’re absolutely perfect! I even made the vanilla kind too :) (http://bit.ly/KV1XbF) Thank you again for inspiring me and making me homesick (in a good way!). Love your blog–cheers!
Hi,
I would like to make these cookies soon. My one concern is about the chocolate sprinkles, won’t they melt when u bake them together with the cookies? Hoping for an honest reply.
Hi Valery, No, they don’t completely melt. As you can see from the photo, they pretty much retain their same size/texture.
I have a thumbprint cookie that I love from a Texas-based supermarket chain (United). I have looked all over for a recipe, and while theirs don’t have sprinkles, the cookie itself looks very similar to yours. Will definitely have to try this one! Thanks!
Michelle, did you try these? Do they taste like United’s? I’ve been on the hunt for a recipe like theirs!! Love them!
These look fabulous! Waiting to try them. gonna make them soon! :D
I’d take these over Giant Eagle’s cookies any day – they look positively scrumptious (and I’ve never been a big fan of GE’s cookies anyway)… I’m featuring this post in today’s Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution). I hope you have no objections and always excited to see what you’ll create next…
I love Giant Eagle’s thumbprint cookies! Yours look exactly like them. Putting this recipe on my holiday cookie list for this year.
I grew up in Pittsburgh but have lived in Atlanta for 20 years. One of the first things I do when I get home to visit is go to Giant Eagle and get these cookies! Thanks for the recipe to try!
I’m a transplant in Boston having grown up in Pittsbugh. These cookies are my absolute favorite from Giant Eagle. The frosting is the perhaps the best part of these cookies and I’m not even partial to frosting! My craving for these is now unwavering and will most definitely be getting some on my next visit to da burgh.
For now I will try your recipe and hope for the best!! Thank you!
Thanks for the recipe. I too was raised on giant iggle thumb prints. I’m not as tempted by them now since they switched to the glaze on top. I miss the frosting swirls that would always get smashed in the box ( I guess that is why they switched…) I thought the cookie part was better a than giant eagle’s. Not sure if giant eagle uses much butter in their baked goods these days.
These little cookies are soooo cute! And they look amazingly good! Thanks for sharing this recipe, definitely something to try!
I made these yesterday and they turned out really, really good. We don’t have Giant Eagle but I would bet that no one would challenge me if I told them that I bought these cookies at a bakery. I froze them and will bring some to work and some to a party next weekend.
Your cookies look wonderful. Don’t give up; keep looking for the taste and texture you’re looking for. I’ve been looking for an Irish Soda Bread recipe that results in similar product to the one I remember from a co-worker’s mom. I worked with that person while I was in college and that was too long ago to count the years.
When I read your description of this cookie, the first thing that popped into my mind was “vinegar”, particularly cider vinegar. I’ve seen it used in recipes before when the crumb was tender. (I’m a self-confessed cookbook junkie). They look wonderful, and are probably better than the store ones, you’re just used to the others!
Okay. These look delicious!! My dad loves thumbprint cookies and I love chocolate. I should make these tomorrow for fathers day!
These look amazing!!
I am glad to hear that even you have recipe disasters! I like to think of myself as pretty proficient in the kitchen, but I have had my share of kitchen screw-ups! Just the other day I tried some cinnamon sugar cookies that ended up like a messy cookie sheet cake. Oops!
Oh man these look way better than any jam thumbprint cookie I have ever had. Glad you finally could create it at home. They look yummy!
Oh my gosh, they make a cookie like this at our grocery store in Chicago-Dominicks, which is affiliated with Safeway, called Susan cookies. They’re amazing, the crumbly cookie is a great balance for the rich fudgy top. We’re just missing the sprinkles, which would make them even more amazing, I love the texture of sprinkles. THis was just added to my “to bake” list, once my apartment is cool enough!
I for one think these cookies look absolutely amazing. While I always enjoy the traditional version with jam, I just love this chocolatey version!!
Just made these for a party we are going to tomorrow. The thumbprint cookie tastes like a shortbread cookie and the icing is delicious. Not too sweet! I can’t wait to eat more!
Courtney
These look amazing…wasn’t planning on baking this weekend but I think I have just changed my mind.
Kudos to you for taking the time to keep trying…I think they look better than the store bought ones.
These look Amazing and mouth watering!!!
Love the sprinkles!
Will try these for sure!
I’m sure someone already suggested it, but maybe you should get a “spy” job in the Giant Eagle Bakery to find out exactly how the sprinkle cookies are made! I’ve contemplated working at Panera, if for no other reason than to maybe get baking out of my system! :)
Oh. MY. Word.
These look like the “Chinese” cookies back home, which I am quite certain are not Chinese in origin.
Sub the sprinkles with some chopped walnuts and they are Chinese cookies. I have been trying to nail that frosting FOREVER! Like canned frosting, without the ickiness of canned frosting.
I can’t wait to try this one, forgive me if I roll mine in nuts :)
These look amazing! Too bad they aren’t a perfect match yet! Chocolate frosting is so hard to duplicate! I will have to try this one, it looks a lot more like what I am looking for. All the recipes I have tried are always way to light in color!
Very Cute!
These just look completely dangerous…and absolutely frickin *FANTASTIC*!!!!
Oh boy, these look amazing!! Definitely going to have to try them soon!!
I love thumbprints! And my favorite thing to grill is shishkabobs! YUMMY!
I adore your version. Your frosting swirls are so pretty!
Ha ha ha — Store cookies for up to 5 days. Like they would last that long.
I’m not the hugest cookie fan, except when it comes to a chewy chocolate chip. These look pretty awesome, though :)
Memorial day weekend, I had many baking issues. None were exactly due to the recipes (except maybe the first two pie crusts I made: one burned, one so soggy it never really set up). Once I finally resolved my crust issues, I dropped an entire pie on the floor. From looking at my kitchen, you’d think I threw the pie in the air first. There was lemon curd and meringue all over my oven, cabinets, and floor. When I finally stopped fuming, I cleaned it up and went to bed :)
I’ve been trying to create something similar myself. I found this recipe yesterday and I’m thinking this might work for the fudge center :)
http://www.thechurchcookblog.com/2012/06/peanut-butter-fudge-blossoms.html
those are so pretty! i love the sprinkles on the outside!! thanks for sharing!
Whoa…I have to come to Pittsburgh to get me some of these (the real ones or yours…whichever)! :)
These were my favorite thing about visiting grandma in Pittsburgh she had a never ending supply form Giant Eagle! Also the multi colored sugar cookies. I love the vanilla and chocolate ones equally.
We don’t have Giant Eagle up here so I’ve never had these, but they look awesome! I’m a sucker for anything with sprinkles :)
So excited to try these – the ‘Iggle ones are my favorites.
Girl!! Love this! My Fiance’s mom is from Baltimore, home of the famous “Berger Bakery” cookie! These are his absolute FAVORITE cookies! (I thought to myself WTF is a Berger cookie??) Long story short, he had his mom bring us some and WOW! They are a cake like cookie with a heap of chocolate frosting coated on the top. I’m not sure if it’s actually a frosting or a ganache as it sets up pretty solid after a bit. King Arthur Flour had a recipe contest to see who could recreate these and I used the winning recipe to re-create them at home on Wed. night. Then seeing you re-created awesome cookies for your CCC, I dunno gave me warm fuzzies! Love your blog as it always inspires! My fiance loves your photos as he is a photographer! Thanks for the post! Xo
In Baltimore we just have regular thumbprint cookies, but they are some of my favorites! I will have to try this and see if I like them better with sprinkles!
The only way to improve would be to make the cookie chocolate, too.
These look awesome and very similar to ones my dad gets a Vons in Central CA. One thing, though, is that the frosting on those is kind of chewy, which makes me think that corn syrup in the icing might be helpful. I wonder if you boiled the butter and some corn syrup together and then added the cocoa and other ingredients if that would help. Just a thought. Great job on these!
These look fantastic!
These look fantastic. I’m definitely going to set some time aside to try this recipe out.
Target’s bakery has these amazing red velvet sandwich cookies that I’ve never been able to replicate. I’ve tried red velvet cookie and sandwich cookie recipes and none of them have lived up to flavor.
Oh my gosh, drool! These look so tasty!
They look so lovely!! And delicious I might add! :)
I relate to your post so much. I have been working on some blondies that I know will be awesome, but they are sooooo gooey to the point of being inedible. Attempt 4 is scheduled for next week. It’s nice to know it’s not just me who has colossal kitchen failures sometimes :)
One thing that Never comes out right for me is Gnocchi, whether it be Sweet Potato, Butternut Squash, Regular Potato or Spinach/Potato Combo… It always seems to come out dense. I’ve tried food network Chef Recipes, Food blog recipes and it never comes out right. It’s probably just me!! lol
I really appreciate your humor in this post. If anyone has been in the kitchen long enough, they know what it is like to be “stumped” by a recipe. For me, it’s my grandma’s chicken and vegetable soup. I remember how great it tasted when I was a child and I wonder if it was the recipe I miss or just my grandma. Either way, I have a great time trying to get the recipe down.
Thanks for sharing !
I used to love these type of cookies!! Can’t wait to try out the recipe :D
Glad you were able to work out something similar…
Michelle, I am in love with these little thumbprint cookies! Your photography is beautiful. I love recreating storebought cookies. I recently tried to recreate Berger cookies (fround here in Baltimore, MD) – they are ultra rich and super soft vanilla butter cookies with fudge icing – the icing is gooey but doesnt melt.. haha must be some weird chemicals in there but I hope to one day master them on my own. :)
I saw the picture of these and was immediately taken back to days wandering the Giant Eagle bakery with my dad. I knew that’s what they were before I even saw the title! I love these little guys–the first cookie I go for on a wedding cookie table! Thanks for working so diligently to recreate them. Can’t wait to try them for myself.
These look like they could be seriously addicting!
These look just like the little thumbprint cookies that I grew up eating! I always loved how they turned to crumbs when you bit into them. I’ll have to try these this weekend!
These are so adorable!!! Love the sprinkles!
OH.My.Word… Your cookies are beautiful!! (Much prettier than the store bought ones!) I can’t wait to try them… I know EXACTLY the texture you are describing.. almost melt in your mouth, but soft, but a little crisp?!? Anywhoo… I do have a “fudgy” type frosting that tastes EXACTLY like canned stuff (which I stumbled across accidentally). I don’t use it often because it made me so MAD!! :0P I worked so hard on finding the “Perfect” homemade chocolate frosting and once I made it & topped a cake and cupcakes for a party…. No one believed I made it :( (I am serious it is that close to canned) but it is pretty darn tasty! Let me know if you are interested. And my almost everytime stumped recipe is the perfect white cake/cupcake that is not too “egg-y” (if that makes sense). I just can’t get it right!
I’m interested in that fudgy type frosting!!! Can you post it?
@Jenn : I have been searching for weeks for something.that is home made but tastes just like a canned frosting. Any chance you would be able to post?
Oh my gosh, this is divine.
These are so, so pretty!
Oh I can’t wait to try these…..these are my favorites!! Yippee! I think I am guilty of pinning almost every one of your recipes! You were even the topic of our latest book club meeting here in Frisco, TX and me and one other girl PIN you all the time….now so will the others as we sang your praises!! :) Thank you for another great recipe!~
I’ve never been able to make White Mountain Frosting from my mother’s vintage Betty Crocker cookbook. :/ A local bakery makes something similar to these and I never did “get it” because I always thought thumbprint cookies were filled with jam. I always wondered if it was their creative way of using up leftover icing because it was usually just dabbed in there instead of piped. These are really pretty though.
My favorite version of these cookies dates way back to Fifth Avenue Bakery in NuKen in the sixties. They also made the wafers for communion at m y church and I swear it was the same sweet-tasting dough as the cookie. The piece de
resistance for theirs, however, was toasted almond slivers around the outside of the dough. Fabulous!
When I saw the title of the post, the first thing I thought of was Giant Eagle! These are my husbands favorite cookie. I agree with you about the “canned icing”. I have been known to steal I bit of icing from his cookie! I’m going to bake these Saturday morning before the heatwave arrives. I’ll let you know the results. P.S. If you ever need taste testers, we are available. Have a great weekend.
Yum! It looks like you did a great job recreating those cookies! My favorite bakery makes the most amazing chocolate chip cookies. I’ve been dying to make them on my own…but I need more baking experience before I’d be ready to tackle that! Probably need to sample the cookies more too, couldn’t hurt :)
these are so completely FUN!!
I had to laugh at the last line of your post. Just last night I was making strawberry jam that boiled over. We had strawberry jam all over the stove, down the front of the oven and the floor surrounding the stove. Somehow, I even managed to get jam in the oven door between the panes of glass … not sure how I’d even go about getting that cleaned.
LOVE those from Giant Eagle as well!!! Their thumbprint cookie base is very tender and reminds me more of a shortbread than the usual thumbrpint cookie. Let’s face it…it’s really all about the frosting on top! YUM! I can’t wait to try them.
These look so good! Have you tried the ones from the Macy’s bakery downtown? They’ve been making them for decades and they are delicious!
Your cookies are beautiful and I intend to try them in the near future. Judging from the bakery cookies in the picture provided, the frosting looks like it is more fudge-based to achieve a smoother texture. Have you tried adding whipping cream and melted chocolate to make the frosting?
Those look insanely delicious. As an avid baker who is always experimenting (like a mad scientist) I’ve had my share of baking defeats. I usually throw the towel in after the first time so I respect your determination! I have issues with cakes that I put booze in. They raise so beautifully in the oven and just before they are done baking they flop on me. Any ideas?
I have a recipe that I have attempted several times. The first time I tried it was at Christmas, and I must admit I had a bit too much wine – however – the desert was absolutely amazing. I hazily remember having to add stuff, because the batter wasn’t what I thought it should be, and now I can’t remember what I did. I have tried several times since to make it again, with disastrous results, either overflowing the pan and making a huge bubbly mess in the oven, or having to cook it for three times as long to get it to hold together….if I could travel back in time, I would’ve written down my initial tipsy modifications. lol It is from one of my favourite TV personalities, Nigella Lawson. If you can get it right, it is absolutely fantastic! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/cranberry-orange-and-almond-pudding-recipe/index.html
I am from Pittsburgh and I know about these cookies. You brought to us the Lofthouse cookies and now these!!
You are my favorite blogger!!! I also just made your sausage cheese stuffed peppers, my family still are talking about them and their deliciousiness!!
Thanks for all you do, Summer vacation starts for me tonight so looking forward to happy cooking with your blog.
OK, had to wipe the drool from my keyboard. I am not much of a cookie person (I know, I know…) but these look amazing. They remind me of the thumbprints from the former Kaufmann’s bakery (Macy’s still sells them). Can’t wait to try.
Look yummy! I make icing for brownies that looks like the icing on the picture or your grocery store cookies. Melt a couple ounces of unsweetened chocolate, half stick of butter. Add 1 tsp vanilla. Alternately add powdered sugar (about 1/2 cup at a time) with milk (tsp at a time), beating well with a spoon. You’ll know when to stop when it’s smooth and glossy.
These are so cute! And they look delicious which makes it all the better.
As soon as I saw the first photo I thought about Giant Eagle’s thumbprints! Unfortunately I think their secret includes lots of hydrogenated oils.
LOVE the giant Eagle thumbprints! I’m thinking the same. Just made a batch for trial & error for a friends wedding late Sept. Not really impressed. too dry. going back to my Russian teacake recipe I’ve had since the 70’s basically the same but less 1/2 c. flour. but it was worth the try.
Enjoy ~~ Happy Baking!
Now these are some thumb prints!!! What a great looking cookie!
I wonder if some of the consistency is due to them using more shelf stable and cheaper oils in place of butter – I like your ingredients better ;)
These look lovely! Yum!
These are gorgeous! We don’t have these cookies in our area, but I wouldn’t be buying them in an instant! Your version looks so gooood! I’ve loved your recipes this week. Great job!
For years I have been trying to recreate the Giant Eagle thumbprint!! The chocolate ones are delicious, but I also love the regular icing ones. I can’t tell you the number of batches of both cookie and icing that have been inedible! If you ever come across an icing that is similar, post it :)
In the meantime, can’t wait to try this one, and it’s good to know I’m not alone!
I think I see the Gourmet Cookie Book in one of your photos… I just can’t get along with that book. The way the recipes are written I ALWAYS end up leaving out a step or messing them up some other way. So frustrating!
I have no words!!!
here is a chocolate frosting recipe that is pretty good you might try for centers (don’t let the bad pics fool you)
I love thumbrprints and can’t wait to try these
:0) Laurie
http://tinkerspiggies.blogspot.com/2011/06/i-know-this-is-repost-but-i-wanted-to.html
Looks absolutely delicious! Almost too good to eat infact.
These cookies look so beautiful! I love thumbprint cookies, and don’t make nearly enough of them!
The recipe I so wish to recreate are Stella D’oro Swiss Fudge Cookies!!
Wow, it looks like you worked really hard on this one!! It seems it was a success because they look amazing :) I’ve been stumped on so many recipes that they wouldn’t even all fit in one comment ha ha. One I can think of off the top of my head is rice noodles – they always come out a mushy mess!
Oh my gosh, those are so pretty! I am only 10 yrs. old and I just got my interest in baking and cooking, and the moment I saw your website I immediately subscribed! Your icing skills are amazing and your determination is awesome. These look so good and I am going to try and get all the stuff I need to make these ASAP! Thanks for helping a beginner baker/cooker!
~A big fan
That’s so cool that your 10 and you are baking! I’m twelve, and started when i was 10 too! If you want some easy recipes and cool blogs, besides this one, here’s some that have some really cute stuff:
Bakerella
Pioneer Woman
Cookies and Cups
Glorious Treats
Bake @ 350
Hope you like them! :)
Thanks Mackenzie! It’s nice to know that I am not the only kid on this blog.