Hazelnut Sugar Cookies

Have tea for two…make cookies for a crowd…or bake them with children. These cookies are crunchy and full of flavor

Do you remember the little treats that come with your cappuccino or tea when in Europe (or any nice place) that always leaves you wanting another? These tasty morsels remind me of them—buttery, sugary, hazelnut cookies with a texture unlike any other. They are delicate and will melt in your mouth. As a matter of fact, while writing this post I ate too many. Thank God, butter is in again and is supposed to be healthy. I'm all for that because I love butter. These  cookies are easy to make and have few ingredients. If you don’t eat them all, they will last for a week in an airtight container. ​

Here in the mountains, I have a few folders with recipes and is where I found this one. The original comes from an old issue of Gourmet magazine. ​

The original recipe says that the dough freezes well and that you can double the recipe.  This is a good recipe for children.

The roasted hazelnuts with their skin rubbed off

The dough

Baking the cookies

Rolling the cookies in sugar

Print Recipe

Ingredients: 

Makes 30-40 small cookies

½ cup hazelnuts
¼ cup sugar
3 Tbs. turbinado sugar
3/4 cup flour
½ cup cold butter
a pinch of salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and set the rack in the middle.
Toast the hazelnuts for about 6 minutes, until the skin begins to loosen and they become fragrant. Rub the nuts in an old kitchen towel to remove most of the skin and cool to room temperature. Pulse the nuts and sugar in a food processor until the nuts are finely ground, then add the flour and a pinch of salt and pulse until combined. Cut the cold butter into small pieces and add to the mixture. Pulse until a ball begins to form, dividing the dough in half and forming  it into two logs, using your hands. Wrap the dough in saran wrap, forming them into two 11-inch long logs that are about an inch wide. Chill for at least an hour (or up to a day). Cut logs into ½-inch slices and arrange them on two baking sheets. Bake one sheet at a time until the bottom edges just begin to turn a pale gold, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool the cookies on the sheet for two minutes or longer, dip them in a bowl sugar and cool on a plate. Store the cookies in an air-tight container. They will last for several days and improve with age. (Even the crumbs are good.)

Guten Appetit
Recipe from Gourmet’s food editor Maggie Ruggiero's mother,  Trudy Schwarz
by ©Sunnycovechef
​