POM Pistachio Thumbprints

Prepare Crimson POM Jelly in advance of making cookies.* Preheat the oven to 350ºF. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture. Put the pistachios in a shallow bowl. Shape heaping teaspoons of the dough into 1-inch balls and roll in pistachios, pressing to coat. Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. With your thumb, make a deep impression in the center of each cookie. Spoon teaspoon Crimson POM Jelly into each hollow. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Cool cookies on cookie sheets for 3 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.

Crimson POM Jelly:

Prepare fresh pomegranate arils, if necessary.** Reserve 1 cup of the arils from fruit and set aside. (Refrigerate or freeze remaining arils for another use). Prepare fresh pomegranate juice, if necessary.***, in a 6-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, combine pomegranate juice, lemon juice and pectin, over high heat, bring mixture to a boil, stir in sugar all at once, then stir constantly, heat mixture again until it comes to a full rolling boil; boil 1 minute over medium-high heat, remove from heat and skim foam from jelly with a spoon, discard foam, immediately ladle the jelly into clean jelly jars with lids or refrigerator containers with tight-fitting lids, sprinkle reserved arils over the top of each container of jelly, cover tightly, let stand for 45 minutes to cool, then refrigerate for 1 hours, if not using immediately, refrigerate for up to 4 to 6 weeks or freeze for up to 1 year. Serve this pomegranate recipe.

**To prepare fresh arils, score 1 large POM Wonderful Pomegranate and place in a bowl of water. Break open the pomegranate under water to free the arils (seed sacs). The arils will sink to the bottom of the bowl and the membrane will float to the top. Sieve and put the arils in a separate bowl.

***To prepare fresh pomegranate juice, cut 2–3 large POM Wonderful Pomegranates in half and juice them with a citrus reamer or juicer. Pour the mixture through a cheesecloth-lined strainer or sieve. Set the juice aside.