The northern Italian city of Turin has been famed for its chocolate-hazelnut confections for more than 200 years, and it’s no wonder: It’s a magical combination. These hazelnut chocolate cookies are sure to satisfy anyone’s sweet tooth.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (6 ounces) hazelnuts, roasted and skinned (see Cook's tip, below)
- ½ cup (3¾ ounces) sugar
- ¾ cup (3 ounces) brown rice flour
- ½ cup (2 ounces) 60% dark chocolate chunks, plus extra for garnish
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, cold, cut in small cubes
Directions
Heat the oven to 350° F. Line 2 large baking sheets with baking parchment.
In a food processor, combine the hazelnuts, sugar, rice flour, chocolate chunks and salt and process to an even meal. Add the butter and whiz to a soft, crumbly dough, scraping down the bowl once to redistribute the mix.
Using a 1-inch spring-release ice cream scoop and working with half the dough at a time, form firmly packed half-domes and arrange on a lined baking sheet.
Gently rotate each cookie with your fingertips to compact and smooth the surface. Bake for about 20 minutes, until barely firm. While the first batch bakes, repeat with the remaining dough.
Immediately after removing the baked cookies from the oven, top each one with a chocolate chunk, which will soften and stick in place. Transfer the cookies to a rack and let cool completely.
Cook’s tip: To prep the hazelnuts, spread them on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast at 350° F until lightly toasted and fragrant and the skins start to split, 8-10 minutes. Rub the nuts together in a clean kitchen towel to dislodge as much as possible of the brown skins. Pick the nuts out of the debris and let cool.
Nutrition Analysis: 70 cal, 6 g fat, 5 mg chol, 15 mg sodium, 5 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 4 g sugar, 1 g protein.
The author of more than a dozen cookbooks to date, Gluten-Free Living Contributing Editor Jackie Mallorca’s titles include The Wheat-Free Cook and Gluten-Free Italian.
