Hazelnut Shortbread Hearts Food

HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add syrup and vanilla. Beat in flour just until combined; fold in nuts. Shape into two 1-1/2-in. rolls; wrap tightly in waxed paper. Chill for 2 hours or until firm. , Cut into 1/4-in. slices and place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 325° for 14-16 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Remove to wire racks to cool. , In separate microwave-safe bowls, melt candy coating disks; stir until smooth. Drizzle over cookies. Let stand until set.

CHOCOLATE DIPPED HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place hazelnuts on baking sheet. Bake until they're a shade darker and fragrant, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
• Lower oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place hazelnuts in blender or food processor and pulse to coarse bits; set aside. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt to blend; set aside.
• Beat butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon until smooth. Beat in egg. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Add the chopped hazelnuts and mix until distributed evenly throughout.
• Form into long cookies and place on greased cookie sheets. Bake until firm, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on racks.
• In a saucepan over lowest heat or in a double boiler, melt chocolate. Dip 1 end of cooled cookies into melted chocolate. Place back on cookie sheet to harden.

HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD STICKS

Steps:

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 325°F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until smooth. Beat in 1/2 cup finely ground hazelnuts and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture until just combined.
• Shape dough by tablespoonfuls into 3-inch-long logs. Place on prepared baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart. Bake cookies until light golden brown around edges, about 20 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool cookies completely.
• Stir milk chocolate in top of double boiler over barely simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Place 1/3 cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts in small bowl. Dip 1 end of cookie into melted chocolate, then into coarsely chopped hazelnuts. Return to rack. Repeat with remaining cookies. Let stand until chocolate is set, about 1 hour. (Cookies can be made 2 days ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.)

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Cream butter, Nutella and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg. In another bowl, whisk flour, cinnamon and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Add hazelnuts; mix well., Divide dough in half; shape each into a disk. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-1/4-in. scalloped round cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until bottoms are light brown, 8-10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. If desired, dust with confectioners' sugar.

CHEDDAR & HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Blitz 85g of the hazelnuts in a food processor until ground. Cut the rest of the hazelnuts in half.
• Pulse the ground hazelnuts, butter, flour, cheddar, ½ tsp salt and the egg in the food processor a few times. Don't pulse for too long - you want the mixture to look like breadcrumbs rather than coming together in a ball. Tip the mixture onto a large piece of cling film and, using the cling film to shape it, mould it into a ball, then leave in the fridge for a couple of hours.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Pull off chunks of the dough - about a tablespoon at a time - and roll each piece into a ball. Place on a baking sheet and flatten each biscuit to around 3.5cm across, leaving room between each one. Push 3-4 hazelnut halves into each biscuit. Cook for 10 mins, or until the biscuits are golden brown. Leave to cool on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack. Will keep for up to three days in an airtight container.

HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD BALLS

Steps:

• Butter an 8 1/2-inch cake or springform pan; set aside. Sift together flour and salt into a small bowl; set aside. Place butter in bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Cream until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add sugar, and continue to beat until very light in color and fluffy, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, about 2 minutes more. Add vanilla, if using. Add flour mixture, and combine on low speed, scraping with spatula if necessary, until flour is just incorporated and dough sticks together when squeezed with fingers.
• Pat dough into prepared pan. If rolling out dough to cut into shapes, form into a flat disk; wrap in plastic. Chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Add 1/2 cup finely chopped hazelnuts (or pecans) to creamed butter-and-sugar mixture. Roll dough into 1-inch balls with your hands; chill.
• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Bake until firm and just starting to color, 20 to 25 minutes.