Happy Holidays, my friends! It's my favorite time of year because I get to bake all the time without being told to stop (by my family). My justification for holiday baking is that if I don't bake, well, who is going to then share that holiday cheer?
I'm here today to present to you these Hazelnut Sandwich Cookies—a true holiday gem. These cookies are going to be a showstopper in your holiday cookie box, because who doesn't like a little chocolate and hazelnut? The cookies are delicate and tender, with a rich, chocolate-hazelnut filling that will leave you craving for seconds...or thirds.
Okay, now I won't sugarcoat it (pun intended), this recipe isn't exactly for the novice baker. You will have to measure carefully and channel your inner patience to make this delicacy. But, trust me, it's worth it because you are creating hazelnut-infused clouds of chocolate joy.
Consider these tips while making the cookies:
Spooning and leveling flour - the key to any fluffy and tender baked good is accurately measuring your flour. Accidentally compacting your measuring cup with flour can ruin almost any baked good, so I recommend spooning the flour into your measuring cup until it is full. Then with the flat side of a butter knife, swipe the excess, overflowing flour off. This method is called spooning and leveling your flour. Alternatively, you can use a kitchen food scale to get the most accurate results.
Room temperature ingredients - ensuring that all of your ingredients are at room temperature or the same temperature allows for them to mix together well and as smoothly as possible.
TOTAL TIME: 1 hr 30 mintes + chilling time
YIELD: 30 cookies
INGREDIENTS:
Cookie
1 ¼ cup hazelnut flour
3 ⅓ cup all purpose flour (400 grams)
2 tablespoons cocoa powder (10 grams)
2 flax eggs
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons brown sugar (75 grams)
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (75 grams)
2 sticks softened butter (230 grams)
1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Hazelnut Filling
¼ cup heavy cream
½ cup dark chocolate
½ cup (4 oz./120 grams) hazelnut spread of choice
METHOD:
Mix together the all purpose flour, hazelnut flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Then in another bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Then beat in your flax eggs for 2 minutes.
Add the wet ingredients into the try ingredients and beat for 3-4 minutes until completely combined.
Shape the dough into a disk shape and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Once the dough chills, remove the disk from the fridge and bring it to room temperature. While the dough comes to room temperature, line a few baking sheets with parchment.
Flour your work surface and roll the dough to a 1/4 in thickness. Use a 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out 60 cookies. Place the cookies onto baking trays lined with parchment.
Place the trays in the fridge and preheat the oven to 375° F. Once the oven reaches temperature, bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes. Then, let them completely cool before picking them up and filling the sandwiches.
While the cookies cool, make the filling. Set up a double boiler and heat the heavy cream until steaming. Add in the dark chocolate, hazelnut spread, salt, and coffee powder. Keep mixing until fully combined. Then, set aside until the filling cools to room temperature (1 hour)
Once the cookies have cooled, place the filling in a piping bag and add a dollop to 30 of the cookies. Gently press the other 30 cookies on top of the piped cookies. Add chocolate drizzle and chopped hazelnuts to decorate the cookies.
made this? DM us a picture or tag us @agktchn!