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–+ servings

Chocolate Turtle Thumbprint Cookies

These soft brownie-like chocolate turtle thumbprint cookies are filled with a thumbprint of caramel, pecans and sea salt.
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chocolate cookies, chocolate thumbrint cookies, peanut butter and jelly thumbprint cookies, turtle cookies, turtle thumbprint cookies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Assembly Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 28 cookies

Equipment

Ingredients

For the chocolate cookie dough

  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • ½ cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt

For the caramel topping

  • 12-15 Kraft baking caramels or 1 cup Kraft caramel baking bits
  • ¼ cup milk or heavy cream

Additional toppings

  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • coarse sea salt

Instructions

To make the chocolate cookies

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (use convection bake if you have it).
  • Add the softened cream cheese and softened butter to a medium or large mixing bowl and beat on medium to high speed until they are well combined.
  • Add the sugar and beat until combined. Scrape down the bowl once complete.
  • Add in eggs and mix until just combined.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt).
  • Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in 2-3 portions, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the bowl once complete.
  • Use a small cookie dough scoop to spoon the cookie dough on to a greased cookie sheet (or lined with parchment paper). Place the cookie dough 2-3 inches apart to allow for spreading.
  • Bake the cookies for 14-16 minutes or until they just begin to crack.
  • Remove the cookies from the oven and immediately use the back of a tablespoon measuring spoon (or a regular spoon) to make indents in the center of all of the cookies.
  • Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheets while you make the caramel thumbprint filling.

To make the caramel topping.

  • Place the caramels and milk in a medium microwave-safe mixing bowl. Heat them in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between each one, until the caramels are melted and the mixture is smooth.
  • Spoon the caramel into the indents on the cookies.
  • Immediately sprinkle chopped pecans and coarse sea salt over the caramel. Allow the cookies to cool for 15 minutes total on the cookie sheets before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool to room temperature.