1. Beat the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Gradually add the cornstarch, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla and beat on medium until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stir in the flour until well combined.

2. Divide the dough in half and place in separate bowls. Add red food coloring to one portion of dough and blend thoroughly. Add blue food coloring to the other portion and blend thoroughly. Shape each portion into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 350F. Divide each disk into 3 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 15-inch rope. Place 1 red rope and 1 blue rope, side by side, on a work surface and twist together. Cut the twisted rope into 8 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Make an indentation in the center of each ball with your thumb. Repeat with the remaining red and blue ropes of dough.

4. Bake the cookies until firm to the touch, 10 to 12 minutes. Place 1 candy in the center of each warm cookie. Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Tip: Food Coloring
To get an intense, vibrant color, try using paste food coloring, available in larger supermarkets and specialty baking supply shops. But be careful—just a dab of paste coloring goes a long way. 

Variations
Fill  the thumbprints with white chocolate mints, raspberry jam or blueberry jam once they’re baked.

Recipe courtesy of the Easy To Bake, Easy To Make recipe collection.