Recipe - 1988 1st Place Fay Kuhns Thumbprints

One half cup Butter
One fourth cup Sugar
One half teaspoon Vanilla
1 Egg, separated
1 cup Flour
One fourth teaspoon Salt
1 One fourth cup Finely chopped nuts
One fourth cup Raspberry jam

Preparation time: 20 minutes Chilling time: 1 hour Baking time: 15 to 18
minutes

1. Beat together butter and sugar in a mixer bowl. Add vanilla and egg
yolk. Mix well.

2. Mix flour and salt, add to butter mixture and mix well. Cover;
refrigerate at least 1 hour.

3. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Shape dough into 1inch balls. Beat egg
white lightly in a small bowl. Put nuts in another small bowl. Dip each
ball into egg white, then roll in nuts. Put balls 1 inch apart on ungreased
cookie sheet. Press thumb in the center of each to make an indentation.

4. Bake until light golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool on wire racks. Fill
indentation with a small amount of raspberry jam.

Faye Kuhn, of Earlville, Illinois, recalled growing up in the tough times
of the '40s: "Despite the lack of finances, no holiday was ever ignored in
our household. Christmas, however, held the highest of honors. . . We all
boarded the train and off to the city we would go. We would arrive home
loaded with 'Evening in Paris' cologne, mittens, socks, handkerchiefs and
coloring books bought at Kresge's and Woolworth's. Mom would then visit the
local A & P for turkey, cranberries, sweet potatoes, fresh ground coffee,
nuts, apples, oranges and one pound of butter to baste ol' Tom with.
However, there was one thing my mother didn't do in those days and that was
to bake Christmas cookies, for neither time nor money allowed such a
luxury." But when her mother retired, she started baking Christmas cookies,
Kuhn recalls. The family wanted her to make the thumbprints, yet no one
knew the name or the recipe. "Mother put on her coat, crossed our back yard
and knocked on our neighbor's door. She returned somewhat later,
victorious, with recipe card in hand." from the Chicago Tribune annual Food
Guide Holiday Cookie Contest December 8, 1988
Posted to MMRecipes Digest V3 #340

From: Linda Place placel@worldnet.att.net

Date: Thu, 12 Dec 1996 11:32:51 +0000