Continuing with Holiday Cookie Baking week, I bring to you. . Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies!! I am obsessed with Nutella or chocolate hazelnut butter. . but opted for a healthier, all-natural chocolate hazelnut butter for these cookies. . I am definitely trying the Nutella next time. These cookies were still tasty but a little dense so I want to see if using Nutella next time will make any difference. If any of you have baked with Justin’s All Natural chocolate hazelnut butter, I’d LOVE to hear about it!
This cookie recipe is from Simply Sensational Cookies by Nancy Baggett. This will be the last cookie recipe from this cookbook I publish here on my blog because you simply MUST purchase this cookbook for yourself!!
I LOVED these with the raspberry jam I had. . this added another layer of sweet and tangy, which I loved. And well, I just love fruit jam or preserves and cookies together. Nancy shows these cookies three different ways: 1) plain 2) as a cookie sandwich with Nutella in the middle and 3) as the Nutello Raspberry Thumbprint cookies. Brilliant. My variations are slightly different to give you more ideas on what you can do with these wonderful Nutella filled cookies!!
I hope you enjoy!
Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies. . Three Ways!!
Ingredients
- 1 cup Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter slightly softened and cut into chunks
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- about 1/3 cup turbinado sugar
- confectioners sugar for dusting
- raspberry jam or preserves for the thumbprint cookies
Instructions
- Position your baking rack in the center and preheat your oven to 325 degrees
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, on medium speed, mix the Nutella, butter, cocoa powder, baking powder and 3 tablespoons of water until well blended. On low speed, beat in half of the flour. Then, beat in the remaining flour just until well incorporated. If the dough is too dry, add a little more water.
- Scoop out 1-inch dough portions and shape into dough balls. Roll them in the turbinado sugar until well coated. Space them about 2 inches apart on the parchment paper lined baking sheet. Press down the dough balls into 2-inch evenly thick rounds using your palm.
- Bake for about 12-16 minutes (every oven is different) or until the cookies are barely firm when pressed in the center top.
- Transfer to a wire rack and let the cookies cool.
- Variations:
- ) Sprinkle extra turbinado sugar on top and bake the cookies
- ) Dust confectioners sugar on top of cooled cookies
- ) Prepare the raspberry thumbprints: when rolling the dough balls, do the same as noted above and after you have rolled in the turbinado sugar, press a deep indentation into the center of each dough ball with your thumb. Put the raspberry jam in each cookie and bake an extra 1-2 minutes for these.
