Pink Peppercorn Thumbprint Cookies

Inside this tender little unassuming butter cookie hides a beautiful flavor surprise.  The first taste is buttery and sweet; exactly what you would expect, but then the floral peppery flavor of the pink peppercorns floats through and mingles with the chocolate ganache for an elegant finish.

Makes 25 small cookies

For the cookies:
4 oz. unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon whole pink peppercorns, coarsely ground or crushed in mortar and pestle
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons almond meal
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

For the ganache:
1/3 cup cream or 1/2 & 1/2
1/2 cup (about 3 ounces) chopped chocolate. (Use a chocolate you love to eat for the best taste!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or grease the baking sheet.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter for about 2 minutes until fluffy and then gradually add the sugar. Continue to beat 2-3 more minutes, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl at least once during mixing.

Add the egg yolk and beat until completely incorporated, then add the vanilla and continue to beat until well mixed. Add the salt and coarsely ground pink peppercorns and mix to combine. Add the almond meal and beat well. With the mixer on low add the flour and mix stopping just before it's completely incorporated.  With a spatula, finish mixing in the flour by hand.

Scoop tablespoon size portions of dough and roll between palms to shape into a sphere. Place the dough ball on the baking sheet and using a finger gently press the center of the dough ball to create an impression. If the sides of the dough crack press it back together. Don't worry about creating perfectly uniform cookies, go for the artisanal hand-made look and just press and pinch each cookie into a reasonably roundish shape.

Bake on the middle rack of a 350 degree F oven for about 11 minutes. When done, the cookies should look set, but not have taken on any color. The centers will likely have puffed up during baking, so once they are out of the oven, use your finger or the end of a wooden spoon,  to gently  tap the center of each cookie to create a defined indentation. Let the cookies cool 2-3 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer them to a cooling rack and dust with powdered sugar.

While the cookies are baking, make the ganache. Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl and set aside. Heat the cream or ½ & ½ to just below a boil. (The microwave works well for heating such a small volume, but be careful not to overheat it to a boil.) Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for 30 seconds, then whisk the mixture together. If all the chocolate doesn't melt, heat the mixture in the microwave for 10 seconds on medium power and repeat as necessary to get all the chocolate melted. The ganache should be smooth and shiny.

Once the cookies are cool, fill each one with chocolate ganache. It's easiest if the ganache is warm and fluid, so reheat if necessary.

Note: The dough can be made ahead and refrigerated, but let it come to room temperature before shaping the cookies otherwise it will be too crumbly to shape easily.  The dough can be chilled in a log shape and the chilled dough sliced into disks for baking, which is much faster. The ganache makes a nice frosting for the slice and bake version.