by kaykay
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kaykay's Notes:
Expand1 cup whole hazelnuts Ask a question about this ingredient
7 ounces almond paste Ask a question about this ingredient
1 cup sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
3 egg whites Ask a question about this ingredient
1 tablespoon frangelico, optional Ask a question about this ingredient
Two 3.5 ounces fine quality semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate bars, melted Ask a question about this ingredient
Preheat oven to 350° F. Place hazelnuts on a baking sheet in one layer in middle of oven 10 to 15 minutes, or until lightly colored and skins are blistered. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam 1 minute. Rub nuts in towel to remove loose skins (don't worry about skins that don't come off) and cool completely.
Ask a question about this stepLower oven temperature to 325°F. Place parchment paper on two large cookie sheets.
Ask a question about this stepPlace 1/2 cup hazelnuts into the bowl of a food processor and process until roughly chopped. Add the sugar and continue to process until the hazelnuts are finely ground. Add the almond paste and process until paste is broken up and uniform in texture. Add egg whites and process until dough is smooth. Add remaining 1/2 cup hazelnuts and pulse food processor until nuts are roughly chopped.
Ask a question about this stepAllow mixture to stand for 20 minutes.
Ask a question about this stepUse a small ice cream scoop, or drop level tablespoons onto the prepared parchment. Dough can also be formed into balls for more evenly shaped cookies.
Ask a question about this stepBake for 25-30 minutes, rotating the cookie sheets from top to bottom during baking. The cookies should be slightly golden, but be careful not to over bake.
Ask a question about this stepRemove cookies from the oven and cool. Once cooled completely, use a thin metal spatula to remove from parchment paper. Dip cookies halfway into melted chocolate. Place in refrigerator until chocolate is set.
Ask a question about this stepThanks for the good tips and suggestions...The ratio of almond paste to egg whites to sugar was inspired from a Cooks Illustrated recipe, but I altered the nuts, added chocolate, frangelico, etc. Perhaps the chocolate took it over the top. I also used bittersweet as you did-- 71% Valrhona, but I think if you are a nut lover (as I very much am) you could also mitigate the sweetness by losing the chocolate altogether (or maybe just dip a smaller portion). I think adding even another 1/2 cup of hazelnuts roughly chopped in the second addition of nuts would make the macaroon uber-nutty, almost reminiscent of a fine torrone. Adding a little salt would probably go quite nicely with nuts.
Hi Kaykay--I'm testing these for Editors' Pick this weekend. I love hazelnuts--will let you know how it goes!
Hi drbabs--
Thanks for offering to test my recipe. Unlike many macaroon/macaron cookies where the almonds are ground to a flour-like consistency, I prefer a nuttier, textured cookie...I try to be careful not to grind up the second 1/2 cup of nuts too much as I enjoy coming across larger chunks. In fact, I think I might even add more nuts next time I make it. Hope you enjoy!
I made these last night--my husband adored them and was eating them for breakfast this morning (with his protein shake...what's wrong with this picture?!). The food processor definitely makes easy work of macaroons. And kaykay is right--the hazelnuts add a great nuttiness and leaving them chunky makes the cookies wonderfully crunchy. Be sure and refrigerate the cookies on parchment or foil once you have dipped them in chocolate or it will be hard to remove them. (I have two plates with chunks of chocolate stuck to them.) Next time I would cut back the sugar or the almond paste, and add extra nuts as kaykay suggested. I also thought they would benefit from a pinch of kosher salt in the batter. I used 72% cacao bittersweet chocolate, which was a nice counterpoint to the sweet cookie. These were easy and fun to make, and kaykay's directions were simple to follow.
Mmmmm, so inviting! Love these. ;o)
I love hazelnuts too! They look wonderful.
Leah is the author of The Hadassah Everyday Cookbook on seasonal Jewish cooking.
I can't wait to try these in the morning!!! YUM.