Thick, soft, chewy, and gooey Thumbprint Cookies filled with caramel, drizzled with chocolate, and sprinkled with salt.

Ingredients :

FOR THE COOKIES:

• 1 cup (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

FOR THE FILLING:

• 12 (11-ounces bag) caramels unwrapped
• 2 tablespoons half & half
• 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips, melted
• coarse sea salt, for topping

Instructions:

FOR THE COOKIES:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter on high speed until creamy, about 1 minute.
4. Lower speed to medium and add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt; continue to beat until combined. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl as needed. Turn the mixer off and pour in the flour; with mixer on low speed, beat mixture until soft dough is formed.
5. Pinch off 1 tablespoon of cookie dough and shape into smooth balls. If the dough is too soft to handle, put in the fridge for 10 minutes.
6. Arrange dough balls about 1-1/2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets. Using the back of a 1/2 teaspoon measure, press down into the middle of each ball to make a well. If the edges crack, reroll the cookie dough ball.
7. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies are dry and edges are golden brown.
8. Cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet; transfer from cookie sheet to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 20 minutes.
9. In the meantime, prepare the filling.

FOR THE FILLING:

1. In microwavable bowl, microwave caramels and half-and-half uncovered on High 1 to 2 minutes, stirring once or twice, until caramels are melted.
2. Spoon caramel into indentation of each completely cooled cookie; let stand about 10 minutes.
3. Drizzle each cookie with melted chocolate; sprinkle with salt.
4. Let stand about 10 minutes or until chocolate is set.
5. Serve.

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Image Source:*diethood.com

Source:diethood.com