Grinch Thumbprint Cookies
Grinch Thumbprint Cookies combine a simple sugar cookie recipe with green chocolate edging and red Grinch hearts to create a holiday cookie that’s as festive as it is delicious.
Cookies are always a holiday favorite, and these are going to be an instant classic in your family. We love making these cookies for the holidays because they look so fancy, but they take very little effort. Winner!
Table of contents
❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- These easy cookies look fancy, but the cookie cutter does all the work!
- They only use a few simple ingredients to make.
- They have a rich butter taste accented with white chocolate almond bark.
- Cookies are a holiday classic!
🛒Ingredients
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These cookies only use a few simple ingredients to make their delicious flavor. The stars of the show are listed below, but you’ll find the complete list of ingredients with amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
- Softened butter
- Sugar
- Vanilla
- White chocolate almond bark
- Bright green food coloring gel for the cookies
- Green food color for the chocolate
- Red Grinch hearts
🔪 How to Make Grinch Thumbprint Cookies
Making these cookies is a snap. It will only look like you brought all your culinary skills to bear. In reality, you’ll be in and out of the kitchen in no time!
Step 1: Combine the Wet Ingredients
Combine the butter, sugar, and egg in a stand mixer and blend with the whish attachment until smooth and creamy. Then, add the vanilla and mix until blended.
Step 2: Combine the Dry Ingredients
In another bowl, combine the flour and salt.
Step 3: Make the Dough
Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until blended. Add several drops of green food coloring gel to the dough and mix with the paddle attachment on low speed until combined.
Step 4: Cut Out the Cookies
Place half the dough on a piece of parchment paper and roll out to 1/2-inch thickness using a floured rolling pin. Then, cut out the cookies using the thumbprint cookie cutter. Continue with the other half of the dough and roll out leftover dough until you’ve cut out as many cookies as possible.
Step 5: Bake
Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown around the edges. Place them on a wire rack and cool completely.
Step 6: Make the Green Chocolate
Melt 4 squares of white chocolate almond bark in a microwaveable bowl for about a minute, stopping every 10 seconds to stir. Then, add several drops of the chocolate food coloring until the desired color of green is achieved.
Step 7: Decorate
Add the green chocolate to the center of the cookies and place a red Grinch heart in the center of the chocolate. Then, use a spoon to add more green chocolate to the outside edge of the cookies. Let the cookies sit on a wire rack or parchment paper for an hour for the chocolate to set. Enjoy!
📝Variations
Do you want to change up this recipe and make it your own? Here are some ways that you can do that!
- Cookies – You can use your favorite sugar cookie recipe for these cookies.
- Icing – If you prefer, you can make a simple icing and color it green instead of using melted chocolate.
- Thumbprint Cookie Cutter – We love the cookie cutter we use, but you can use your favorite thumbprint cookie cutter for this recipe.
If you love the look of these cookies, then try our Santa sugar cookies. They’re adorable!
🥄 Equipment
You’ll only need a few simple items to make these super cute cookies.
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Thumbprint cookie cutter
- Parchment paper
- Cookie sheet
- Wire rack
🥫 Storage
These Grinch thumbprint cookies will last for about a week covered at room temperature. For longer storage, you can refrigerate them for up to 2 weeks.
💭 Tips
There’s not a lot to remember about this recipe. It really is so easy. We just have a couple of things for you to remember.
- It’s important to use oil-based food coloring for the chocolate so it doesn’t seize.
- Be sure your cookies are fully cooled before you add the chocolate to ensure that it sticks to the cookies.
⁉️ FAQ
Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.
Regular food coloring is water-based. When water is introduced to melted chocolate, it causes it to seize or get grainy.
Absolutely. It’s made with food-grade oil. There’s nothing toxic or weird about it.
It’s designed to melt more easily and without the need for tempering. So it’s just easier to work with.
🍽 More Recipes
Do you enjoy sugar cookies? Then try these delicious recipes:
📌 PIN IT!!
🧾Recipe Card
Want to make this recipe? Print the recipe card below, or pin this recipe, so you can find it later.
Grinch Thumbprint Cookies
Equipment
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Thumbprint cookie cutter
- parchment paper
- Cookie sheet
- Wire rack
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter softened
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 2 ½ cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- White Chocolate Almond Bark
- Bright Green Food Coloring Gel – for the cookies
- Green Food Color for Chocolate
- Red Grinch Hearts
Instructions
- In the mixing bowl of a Stand Mixer, add the Butter, Sugar, and Egg, and blend with the Whisk attachment until smooth, and creamy.
- Add the Vanilla, and mix until blended.
- In a separate bowl, add the Flour, and Salt, and mix well to blend.
- Add the Flour mixture to the mixing bowl, and mix until blended, and smooth.
- Add several drops of the Green Food Coloring Gel, and using the Paddle attachment, mix the food coloring into the dough, on low speed. Add a little more Food Coloring Gel if needed, to achieve the bright Green color.
- Place a large piece of Parchment paper on the Kitchen Counter, and sprinkle with Flour.
- Place half of the Cookie dough on the Parchment paper, and with a Floured Rolling Pin, roll the Dough to 1/2 inch thickness.
- Using the Thumbprint Cookie Cutter, cut out the Cookies. Continue until all the dough has been rolled, and all the cookies have been cut out.
- Place on a Parchment paper lined Cookie Sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes, or until Cookies begin to turn golden brown around the edges.
- Remove from the oven to a wire rack, and cool completely.
- When cookies are cool; place about 4 squares of the White Chocolate Almond Bark in a microwave safe dish/bowl, and microwave for about 1 minute, stopping at 10 second intervals to stir the White Chocolate.
- When the Chocolate is melted, remove from Microwave, and add several drops of the Food Coloring, made especially for Chocolate, until the desired color of Green is achieved for the Frosting.
- Frost the center of the Cookies with the Frosting, and place a Red Grinch Heart in the middle of the Frosting.
- Frost around the edges of the cookies, using the back of a spoon.
- Place Cookies on a wire rack, or Parchment paper until Chocolate is set/firm, about an hour.
- Serve cookies, and Enjoy!
Notes
Disclaimer
Any nutritional data I provide is an approximation and actual dietary information can vary based on ingredients and proportion sizes.
