Chocolate Hazelnut Kisses

Total Time: 2 hrs 8 mins Preparation Time: 2 hrs Cook Time: 8 mins

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups hazelnuts
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 egg whites

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 350 degrees f.
• 2 scatter the hazelnuts in a baking pan and toast, gently shaking the pan once or twice to help the nuts toast evenly, until lightly browned and aromatic, 10 to 12 minutes.
• 3 turn off the oven.
• 4 transfer the nuts to the center of a lightly dampened kitchen towel, wrap the towel around the nuts, and rub the nuts around vigorously (but carefully, since they're hot) to remove as much of their skins as possible.
• 5 let the nuts cool completely.
• 6 in a food processor, grind the cooled hazelnuts with the sugar until very fine.
• 7 add the cocoa powder, butter, honey, and vanilla.
• 8 pulse until well blended.
• 9 in a small bowl, beat the egg whites with a fork to break them up a bit but not make them too frothy.
• 10 add about half of the egg whites to the processor and pulse a couple of times, then add the remaining egg and pulse again.
• 11 you're looking for a paste that's smooth but firm enough to hold its shape.
• 12 fit a pastry bag with a large plain or star tip and fill the bag with the dough.
• 13 line 2 heavy baking sheets with parchment paper.
• 14 squeeze a small dot of the dough under each corner of each paper lining to adhere it to the baking sheet (this will make piping easier).
• 15 squeeze dough onto paper in big rosettes or teardrop shapes, making each cookie about 1 1/2 inches across and with at least 1 inch between the cookies.
• 16 give the cookies a bit of height as you pipe.
• 17 if you make them too flat, they'll be more crisp than chewy when baked.
• 18 let the cookies sit for 1 hour before baking.
• 19 reheat the oven to 350 degrees f.
• 20 bake the kisses until they are just set on the outside, about 8 minutes.
• 21 the cookies will firm up as they cool and you want the insides to remain tender and chewy.
• 22 transfer the kisses to a wire rack to cool and serve soon, or store in an airtight container for a few days.
• 23 note: if you use a star tip, be sure that its points are open enough to avoid being blocked by the ground nuts.