Salted Carmel Thumbprint Cookies with Dark Chocolate Drizzle

Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies with a Dark Chocolate Drizzle... I think it's safe to say that these are the most sophisticated cookies I've ever made! I love to eat fancy cookies but this was the first time I had attempted any myself! I found Elisabeth and Butter last spring and I have loved every
recipe of hers that I have made, they are seriously so so good! When I saw these cookies on her instagram they quickly moved to the top of my "must try" list!

To be honest, caramel is not my favorite ingredient.  I've even been known to leave the icing on caramel covered chocolate cake on my plate.  Over the years, Starbucks has opened my mind to caramel little by little, caramel macchiato's are super yummy and if you need an over the top treat a caramel Frappuccino will hit the spot! These cookies have just a tiny well of caramel in the middle and they just looked sooo pretty on her instagram! Seriously, you need to go check them out!

These pictures were taken on my second attempt at making these cookies.  I was seriously surprised at how easy it was to make them pretty! At first I though that my chocolate drizzle was a total fail-they looked too busy, but once I moved them over to a plate I was really pleased with the outcome! My tip for the drizzle is to put plastic cutting boards under your cookie racks to catch the overflow.  Parchment paper would work just fine, but then you waste that parchment paper and if you use cutting boards you can just wash them!

SALTED CARMEL THUMBPRINT COOKIES WITH DARK CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE

Source: Elisabeth and Butter

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE COOKIES 

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter softened to room temperature 

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

FOR THE CARAMEL

22 small caramels

3 tablespoons heavy cream

A pinch of salt 

FOR THE CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

2 tablespoons coconut oil

Course sea salt for topping 

INSTRUCTIONS

FOR THE COOKIES

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper 
2. In a mixing bowl fitted with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar together for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add in egg yolk and vanilla extract and mix to combine
3. Add in the flour, salt and nutmeg and mix to combine until the dough comes together.  It will be slightly crumbly.
4. Roll 1 inch balls of dough in your hand until it comes together and becomes smooth.  Place balls on cookie sheet and flatten slightly with you hand then press your thumb into the center of the cookie.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly golden on the bottoms.  Gently press your thumb into the thumbprint again if it has lost its shape. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before filling. 

FOR THE CARAMEL

In a medium sized saucepan over low heat, melt the unwrapped caramels with the heavy cream, stirring often until smooth.  Fill each cookie with melted caramel

FOR THE CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE

In a small sized saucepan, melt chocolate chips with coconut oil on low heat until smooth.  Let this cool for a few minutes before drizzling with a piping bag or spoon over the cookies.  Sprinkle sea salt on top.