Hazelnut Vanilla Shortbread Food

HAZELNUT-VANILLA SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on 2 sides.
• Cream butter, vanilla seeds, and sugar with a mixer until fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add flour, hazelnuts, and salt. Press into pan; freeze until firm, about 30 minutes. Score shortbread into 18 pieces; bake until gold, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes; unmold using overhang. Let cool on a wire rack. Cut into pieces. Shortbread will keep, covered, for up to 3 days.

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.)

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 and vanilla. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Add the chopped hazelnuts and mix until distributed evenly throughout.
• Form into approximately 1-inch by 2-inch 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.
• Serves: 12; Calories: 242; Total Fat:17 grams; Saturated Fat: 7 grams; Protein: 4 grams; Total carbohydrates: 21 grams; Sugar: 12 grams; Fiber: 2 grams; Cholesterol: 38 milligrams; Sodium: 124 milligrams

HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• If the hazelnuts are raw, toast them by spreading them out on a baking sheet and putting them in a 350 degree oven for ten minutes. Shake the pan a few times.
• Put the flour and the toasted hazelnuts in a food processor together and run until the hazelnuts are completely ground up (you are basically making hazelnut flour). Combining the nuts with the flour makes the whole process neater.
• Put all the ingredients into a large bowl.
• Mix by hand, quickly. Don't overmix. You may see flecks of butter, that's okay.
• Form into a ball, cover with plastic wrap, and cool in the refrigerator for two hours or overnight.
• Work with half the dough at a time, keeping the rest refrigerated.
• Roll the dough into an oblong, and then cut quickly into equal size pieces, the size of a large walnut. Each piece should be rolled briefly between the palms and then put on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press a whole hazelnut into the cookie, fairly deeply.
• Bake ten minutes at 350 Fahrenheit. They should be very lightly browned when you take them out of the oven.
• Let sit until cool. Sprinkle with additional powdered sugar.

HAZELNUT SHORTBREAD STARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place hazelnuts or pecans in a shallow baking pan. Bake about 8 minutes or until lightly toasted; cool.
• In food processor bowl fitted with a metal blade place flour, sugar and cornstarch.
• Add butter and vanilla; process with several on/off turns until mixture is crumbly.
• Add nuts and process until mixture is combined but slightly crumbly (mixture should NOT form a ball).
• Place dough on a lightly floured surface and form into a ball.
• Knead until smooth. Divide dough in half.
• Wrap each half in plastic wrap and chill about 30 minutes or until easy to handle.
• On a lightly floured surface roll half of the dough at a time to 1/4 to1/2 inch thickness.
• Cut dough into stars or rounds with 2 1/2 to 3 inch cookie cutters.
• Place cutouts 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
• Pierce each cutout three times with a fork, going all the way through to the cookie sheet.
• Repeat with second half of dough.
• Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes or until edges and bottoms just start to brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
• If desired, drizzle cooled cookies with melted white chocolate.

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.

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.