another novelty for my Cookie plate this year: crumbly chocolate cookies with hazelnut. together with the ginger kisses they were the most laborious cookies. however since the other cookies (cinnamon scroll cookies, chai cookies, …) were only cut from a roll, it is easy to say something requires more effort. anyways they still were rather easy to prepare – roll balls, press hazelnut into it and decorate with some chocolate and hazelnut brittle (in one step with the ginger kisses). the cookies are very crumbly due to the grounded nuts in the dough. the chocolate on top gives it something luscious.

ingredients (about 40 pieces)

• 125 g soft butter
• 50 g icing sugar
• 50 g grounded hazelnuts
• 100 g starch
• 15 g cacao
• 40 g flour
• 1 teaspoon grounded cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon grounded cardamom
• salt
• min. 40 whole hazelnuts
• 150 g chocolate
• 1 – 2 tbsp hazelnut brittle

preheat oven to 180°.

with a handheld mixer beat butter, sugar and a pinch of salt until creamy. add grounded hazelnuts, starch, cocoa, flour, cinnamon and cardamom and knead in with the dough hook.

with a teaspoon cut off some dough and form about 2 cm balls. do so with all of the dough (balls should have about the same size). place the dough balls onto baking trays lined with baking paper and press a hazelnut into the middle of each.

bake one tray at a time in hot oven for 10 – 12 min and let completely cool down.

chop chocolate and melt in a bain-marie (don’t let it get too hot). with a teaspoon put some chocolate on each cookie and sprinkle with hazelnut brittle. let firm and store in eg a tin box.

Filed under: chocolate, christmas cookies, sweets Tagged: chocolate, christmas cookies, hazelnuts, sweets