Dads Cookies Hazelnut Thumbprints Recipes

HAZELNUT THUMBPRINTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put butter and 1/2 cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg yolk and vanilla, and mix well. Reduce speed to low. Add flour and salt, and mix until just combined. Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.
• Stir together toasted hazelnuts and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl. Roll dough into 1-inch balls; dip balls in egg white, then in hazelnut-sugar mixture. Space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Press down center of each ball with your thumb. Bake for 10 minutes.Remove from oven; press down centers again with the end of a wooden spoon. Return to oven. Bake cookies until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes more. Let cool slightly on sheets on wire racks. Fill each center with jam.

HAZELNUT GANACHE THUMBPRINT COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, hazelnut meal and a pinch of salt
• In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, light brown sugar and granulated sugar together until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract; beat once more. In 2 additions, add the dry ingredient mixture, scraping down the bowl if needed, until completely combined. Transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Scoop scant tablespoonfuls of dough, roll into balls and arrange on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them a few inches apart. Make an indentation, a thumbprint, in the center of each ball of dough using your thumb and/or the help of your index finger. Bake until the bottoms are golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately reinforce the thumbprints using the end of a wooden spoon. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheets.
• While the cookies are cooling, make the ganache. Place the chocolate into a heat-proof bowl. Add the heavy cream to a small saucepan set over medium-high flame and heat until the cream is scalding. Pour the cream over the chopped chocolate and allow to stand for 1 minute. Stir until smooth.
• When the cookies are cool, add a scant teaspoon of chocolate ganache to each thumbprint. Top with a sprinkle of flaked sea salt. If transporting, allow the chocolate to set for 1 hour.

CHOCOLATE & HAZELNUT THUMBPRINT COOKIES

Steps:

• Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Tip the hazelnuts into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the flours, sugar and a pinch of flaked sea salt, and process for 20-30 secs until fully combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture just starts to come together. Tip the dough out onto a work surface and knead by hand until smooth.
• Roll the dough into 25 small balls, then transfer to the prepared baking tray. Using your thumb or the handle of a wooden spoon, make an indent in the centre of each piece of dough. Put the tray in the fridge and chill for 30 mins before baking. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins or until light golden brown. Put the chocolate and oil in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until fully melted. Use a teaspoon to top each cookie with a little melted chocolate. Put aside until the chocolate has set.

THUMBPRINTS WITH DULCE DE LECHE, NUTELLA OR JAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the hazelnuts or pecans out on a small baking sheet and cook in oven, shaking several times, until toasted, 10 to 12 minutes. If using hazelnuts, transfer to a bowl to cool, cover with a folded dish towel, then rub off the skins. (No need to toast the pistachios.)
• Once cooled, transfer the nuts to a food processor, preferably a mini one. Add 2 teaspoons flour and pulse just until nuts are finely ground, being careful not to overprocess.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Add egg yolks and vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well combined, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl a few times as needed.
• Add 1/2 cup ground nuts, the salt and the remaining 2 1/4 cups flour; beat on low speed just until combined, then increase speed and beat until dough starts to clump together. Scrape the bowl and fold a few times to make sure everything is well mixed. Wrap dough in plastic wrap, flatten into a disk, and chill until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Pinch off small pieces of dough the size of a rounded tablespoon (about 20 grams each) and roll the top half of each one in the remaining ground nuts. Place a few inches apart on parchment- or silicone mat-lined baking sheets. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven and make a thumbprint in each cookie. Bake until golden brown on the bottom, and nuts are looking toasty but not burned, 6 to 8 minutes longer. Let cool a few minutes on the baking sheets and transfer to wire racks to cool further. While the cookies are still a little warm, fill each one with about 1/2 teaspoon of filling, and cool completely. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.