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Richly flavored with melt-in-your-mouth yumminess, these Chocolate Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies have the perfect buttery crunch. Relish them as is or take them over the top with chocolate drizzle or chocolate dipped.
These cookies have so many amazing things happening at once. First of all shortbread is pretty much perfect on it own! We then enhance the cookies with both cocoa powder and toasted hazelnuts making for an incredibly deep and roasty flavor that is quite irresistible.
Coat the edges in ground nuts… or not. Dip in chocolate… or not. These cookies are amazing as is and even more decadent and fancy if you go for the extras.
These chocolate hazelnut shortbread cookies are perfect for sharing, we love that they hold up well to packaging (especially when dipped in chocolate), and seem even better with time, making them a wonderful gift.
If you want pure unadulterated shortbread goodness this Perfect Shortbread recipe is for you.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need
Ingredient Notes
- Hazelnuts are especially good but of course, you can substitute other nuts.
- Rice flour keeps the short bread perfectly crisp.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How To Make Chocolate Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
STEP ONE – Finely chop raw hazelnuts. Spread out on a cookie sheet and roast in the oven.
STEP TWO – Cream together softened butter and sugar for about 2 minutes in a stand mixer (or by hand) until just smooth, not fluffy. Scrape down the sides.
STEP THREE – Add vanilla. Mix another few seconds to incorporate. Add in all-purpose flour, rice flour, cocoa powder, hazelnuts and salt. Combine until dough forms.
STEP FOUR – Squish and roll the dough into a log (or two short logs are easier to work with) about 1 1/2 inches in diameter refrigerate 1 hour.
Ways To Enhance
Optional Hazelnut Coating– coat the outside of the chilled cookie roll in chopped hazelnuts by spreading the the nuts in a pan or plate. Brush the cookie dough log with egg white or maple syrup, press and roll in the nuts. You may need to roll a couple times to evenly coat.
Drizzle baked and cooled cookies with melted chocolate. Or alternatively, cover the bottom of the cookie with melted chocolate and let set on a silpat sheet (slip into the fridge or freezer to harden faster), creating a chocolate bottom.
STEP FIVE – Cut in 1/4 inch thick slices, chill on a baking sheet for 20-30 minutes.
Bake in a preheated oven at 325F for 20-25 minutes. Let cool on the pan for 5-10 minutes and transfer on to a cooling rack.
Recipe FAQS
Named shortbread due to its short, or crumbly, structure, which is a result of the high proportion of fat. The traditional recipe, developed in Scotland, consists of one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts flour.
Rice flour gives the shortbread a sandy texture with a crisp delicate crunch.
Shortbread requires just a few ingredients- use good-quality butter and sugar. Rice flour gives a sandy texture and a pinch of salt balances the richness. Refrigerating the dough ensures the butter solidifies and keep the cookie perfectly dense and crisp.
Cocoa powder Dutch Process-is roasted at a high temperature and often treat with an alkali agent to make it less bitter.
Natural Cocoa Powder– is roasted at high temperature but untreated and slightly bitter.
Cacao powder is the purest form of chocolate (check the sources as some make the claim to be cacao but may not be). It is raw, uncooked, with a darker color and more bitter flavor profile. Highly nutrient-dense with antioxidants, flavonoids, magnesium, potassium, and iron.
Cocoa powder and Cacao powder can be used interchangeably in recipes.
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Chocolate Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: around 24 cookies 1x
- Category: cookies
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: american
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Richly flavored with melt-in-your-mouth yumminess, these Chocolate Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies have the perfect buttery crunch. Relish them as is or take them over the top with chocolate drizzle or chocolate dipped.
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (225 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups (187 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup (56 g) rice flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and finely chopped- plus another 1/3 cup for coating the edges
- 1/4–1/2 teaspoon salt (Himalayan is good here)
Instructions
- Cream together softened butter and sugar for about 2 minutes in a stand mixer (or by hand) until just smooth, not fluffy. Scrape down the sides.
- Add vanilla. Mix another few seconds to incorporate. Add in all-purpose flour, rice flour, cocoa powder, hazelnuts and salt. Combine until dough forms.
- Squish and roll the dough into a log (or two short logs is easier to work with) about 1 1/2 inches in diameter refrigerate 1 hour.
- Cut in 1/4 inch thick slices, chill on a baking sheet for 20-30 minutes.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 325F for 20-25 minutes. Let cool on the pan for 5-10 minutes and transfer on to a cooling rack.
Notes
Optional Hazelnut Coating– coat the outside of the chilled cookie roll in chopped hazelnuts by spreading the the nuts in a pan or plate. Brush the cookie dough log with egg white or maple syrup, and press and roll in the nuts. You may need to roll a couple times to evenly coat.
Optional -Drizzle with melted chocolate– Or alternatively cover the bottom of the cookie with melted chocolate and let set on a silpat, slip into the fridge or freezer to harden faster.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 78
- Sugar: 4.4 g
- Sodium: 13.4 mg
- Fat: 2.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.1 g
- Fiber: 0.9 g
- Protein: 1.7 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: Chocolate hazelnut short bread cookies, shortbread recipes, chocolate shortbread recipes,
What?!!! These are the BEST cookies ever! So tender and crisp with the most dreamy chocolate hazelnut flavor. The chocolate coating sends it above and beyond deliciousness. Magic!
★★★★★
Thanks we totally agree!
Do these cookies freeze well?
Yes!
These worked well with Bobs Red Mill gluten free 1:1 flour!
Awesome!
I’d love to try these gluten free. Any ideas on flour alternative….. bobs red mill 1:1?
Thanks!
Yes, that should work. Can use the mix for both the flour and rice flour measurements, as the mix has rice flour in it. 🙂