With almond flour and ube extract, these little ube cookies have a short, crumbly texture and vibrant purple hue. Ube halaya jam goes in the center, incorporating real ube into these cookies. Jump to recipe or read through the post for more information on ube ingredients and recipe modifications.

I’m kind of a sucker for thumbprint cookies. Something about the buttery shortbread dough in contrast with a fruity center just calls to me. They look like little gems and taste like mini pies. My yuzu thumbprint cookie last year became very popular on the blog, so I decided to try another flavor variation with ube.

What is Ube and Where Can I Find It?

You may be seeing ube more and more as a flavor for desserts and drinks at your local cafes. Ube is a purple yam from the Philippines. It has kind of a nutty plus floral aroma, like sweet potato but a little less earthy. With its vibrant purple hue, it makes for some pretty spectacular looking desserts.

Unfortunately there is a LOT of confusion regarding different purple root veggies in America. I find that even grocery stores sometimes mislabel their produce. Fresh ube is not sold in any American grocery store that I know of. You CAN, however, find purple sweet potatoes of various kinds. While they are similar, they are not the same. So when I make an ube recipe, I am truly dedicating the flavor to the original, not a substitute.

You can find frozen grated ube at some Asian grocery stores, but I find it’s easiest to incorporate ube into my baking with ube halaya, which is also known as ube jam. Ube halaya is usually made from the cooked, mashed yams mixed with coconut milk and some sugar. Commercially made ones often include purple food dye and maybe some extract for added ube flavor. They are shelf stable prior to opening and available to purchase even online. My favorite brand is the dragonfly brand, as it has the most actual ube in it compared to other brands.

What About Ube Extract?

Ube extract is really helpful for added flavor and purple color, as many of them have added food coloring. I use the Butterfly brand for mine, but you can omit it if you’d like. You’ll have a regular shortbread cookie dough with purple ube jam middle, which is still fun.

Notes on Flour and Cookie Spreading

The tricky part about thumbprint cookies is that with a high ratio of fat from the butter, they like to spread. However, to maintain that nice thumbprint shape, you want to limit the spreading as much as possible.

One thing I found is that by adding some almond flour to my flour mixture, my dough tends to spread less. I also really enjoy the crumbly texture and moistness of almond flour cookies. If you can’t use almond flour, however, you can still substitute more all purpose flour.

Another trick of the trade is to chill your dough before baking. Please note that different baking trays can change how your cookies bake up too. I always use a metal baking tray lined with parchment paper.

More Asian Cookie Recipes

If you enjoyed this recipe, check out these other fun Asian cookie recipes:

ube thumbprint cookies on a white plate with a green dish towel background
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Ube Thumbprint Cookies

For an easy thumbprint cookie flavor variation try ube. With almond flour and ube extract, these cookies have a short, crumbly texture and vibrant purple hue.
Servings: 16 cookies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Chill Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 42 minutes
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Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter (one stick), 113g
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 100g
  • 1/4 tsp kosher salt, 2g
  • 1 egg yolk, see note
  • 1/2 tsp ube extract
  • 1 cup all purpose flour, 125g
  • 1/4 cup almond flour, 25g, see notes
  • 4 tsp ube halaya

Equipment

  • Electric mixer

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
  • With an electric mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter with sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy.
  • Add egg yolk and extract and beat until homogenous.
  • Add all purpose flour and almond flour and gently mix until mixture comes together in a dough.
  • Use a two tbsp cookie scoop or other spoon to roll small cookie dough balls and place on your prepared baking sheets.
  • Gently press the back of a 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon to create small craters in the middle of each cookie.
  • Scoop a rounded 1/4 teaspoon of ube halaya into each crater.
  • Chill cookies in the fridge for 20 minutes.
  • Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until bottom of the cookie becomes lightly browned. Because of the halaya, I keep these cookies in an airtight container in the fridge if not being eaten the day of baking. Allow cookies to come to room temperature before eating.

Notes

  • If doubling this recipe, you can use one whole egg instead of two egg yolks.
  • You can substitute more all purpose flour for the almond flour if you wish. Almond flour gives the dough a more crumbly texture and prevents spreading.
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