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Thursday 30 April 2009

Childhood favourites: Hazelnut Chocolate Biscuits

When I was a kid, my mum would always let me choose what biscuits I want to bake. I always chose a recipe out of the biggest book, and the one that made the most biscuits. What kid wants a recipe that makes 10 cookies? Rubbish. This recipe makes about 40 biscuits! I still make them even now. They remind me of home. And I don't have to fight with my brother over who gets to lick the bowl.

You'll need these things:
  • 6oz unsalted butter
  • 8oz caster sugar (don't worry if you just use normal sugar, I always buy the wrong kind)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 8oz self raising flour
  • 2oz ground hazelnuts
  • 2oz chocolate chips
  • 3oz desiccated coconut
You need to do these things:

Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Bet in the eggs and vanilla, and then sieve in the flour. Stir in the hazelnuts and chocolate chips and coconut. Roll into walnut-sized balls. Pop on a baking tray (best to put them on a sheet of greased foil so they don't stick to the bottom) and then bake in a preheated oven (180 degrees or gas mark 4) for fifteen minutes or until firm to the touch. You'll have heaps of mixture left over - either carry on rolling and baking, or keep some in the fridge and add it to ice cream. Cookie dough is yum.

You can mix everything up if you like - different chocolate or nuts, and add whatever you want. Just don't add mini marshmallows unless you want a horrid sugary goop. Oops.

Flickr image from Rex Roof's photostream.

8 comments:

  1. Oooh, these sound amazing! and thanks for blogging about these just at the bank holiday weekend, I've no excuses not to make them now!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You should be able to add mini marshmallows - or at least I've got brownie recipes where you can without any problems, just as long as you add them right at the very end so they don't dissolve before they go into the oven, and I bake enough that I'm pretty certain it ought to be the same.

    Also, silicone or teflon sheets make life so much easier when making cookies - no more greased foil or baking paper or anything!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I added the mini marshmallows in with everything else. I think you're right though - adding them to the top of the cookies about four minutes before they're done should work. But this recipe is perfect as it is.

    I'm happy to grease stuff though - I find that there's always a bit of butter left over so I just use that.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh I'm not doubting the perfectness of the recipe at all - they sound delicious! Believe me, if it wasn't for the lack of coconut in my flat, I'd playing in the kitchen right now rather than in front of my laptop...

    You've made me think of one of my favourite cookies as well, a sort of sweet, but with a hint of salt, hazelnutty bite. So easy and so good. More than happy to dig up and fire over the recipe if interested.

    PS - Is it OK to comment? I somehow feel a tiny bit out of place doing so on a blog that labels itself as being "for women".

    ReplyDelete
  5. Pssst - add something extra like ground nuts and they'll work without coconut ;-)

    Of course it's OK for you to comment! We lay to a certain audience, of course, but I'm even more happy to see guys getting involved!

    And do send that recipe over, I'd love to try it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Well good - I just felt I ought to ask, since some blogs aren't so welcoming towards people who aren't in their 'community'.

    So the recipe -

    50g Blanched Almonds
    50g Toasted and Skinned Hazelnuts (the skins tend to come off fairly easily after they've been toasted in the oven if you couldn't find pre-skinned ones)

    100g Sugar
    0.5 Teaspoon Salt (or anywhere from 0.25 to 0.75 depending if you want it really salty or not)
    140g Plain Flour
    100g Unsalted Butter in cubes (or just adjust how much salt you use)

    Put the nuts, salt and sugar into a food processor with the metal blade and run it until they're finely ground.

    Put the nut/sugar mix to the side.

    Put the flour in the food processor and add the butter a piece at a time, running it until it starts to look and feel like sand. It might help to run it in pulses once all the butter is in to get the right texture.

    Add the nut/sugar mix and pulse the food processor for a few seconds at a time until it starts to form into clumps.

    To bake, heat the oven to 180C and form the dough into balls the size of cherries - about 1.5cm across.

    Put the balls on to parchment paper or baking sheets leaving some space between them, and bake for about 10mins until they just start to brown.

    Once you take them out the oven, let them set for a few minutes until you take them off the baking sheets.

    Should make about 40-50 of them - but they tend to vanish quickly!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oooh thanks, Ed! I'll try this out.

    If anyone any other recipes or stuff to send to the Domestic Sluts, just email them to me:

    [email protected]

    Party invites and marriage proposals are gratefully received. We like both equally.

    ReplyDelete
  8. You're welcome, and I've got plenty more recipes where that came from!

    ReplyDelete

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