Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread Dunkers – whoa, that’s a mouthful. And, it’s the best kind too—soft buttery crumbs, full of toasted hazelnuts, then dipped in dark chocolate; and of course let’s not forget the sugar rimming for some added crunch and sparkle.
Now that January is drawing to an end. Can I lure you back into the kitchen for some homemade cookies? The baking hiatus is over. Valentine’s is around the corner and sweet treats are calling.
Oh, I can’t even tell you how much I love this holiday, I don’t care that the naysayers call it a manufactured day. I love it—it is what you make of it, now what others say it is.
It’s not even that matt and I do anything in particular, but I always love that we have something planned, especially since it’s one of the last weekend’s before baseball madness starts in our house.
This year with the baby here, we are playing catch up on planning. But what I do know is I’ll have these cookies baked and ready for Matt because despite years of attempted coercion he will always reach for a cookie over cake or any other dessert first.
Chocolate-Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread Dunkers
Ingredients
- 2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened
- 1 large egg yolk
1 large egg yolk
- 4 tablespoon agave
4 tablespoon agave
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 6 oz. (1 1/2 cups) toasted hazelnut, coarsely chopped
6 oz. (1 1/2 cups) toasted hazelnut, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup coarse sugar
1 cup coarse sugar
- 8 oz. dark chocolate (65%), melted
8 oz. dark chocolate (65%), melted
- 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening
Instructions
Preparation: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line bakesheet with parchment paper.
Sift flour and salt into a bowl; set aside. Place the butter, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream butter on medium-low speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Add in the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add in the egg and vanilla, beat until blended. Reduce the mixer speed low and in the dry ingredients in three additions. Turn off the mixer and fold in the nuts.
Portion the dough in half and shape each half into 15x3x1 inch rectangular logs. Press coarse sugar into each side. Cover with plastic wrap and push both ends with your hand toward the center to tighten the dough. Chill prepared dough for at least 3 hours. Remove chilled dough and slice cookies to ½ inch thickness. Place each cookie 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until cookies are lightly browned, about 18-20 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Place chocolate and shortening in a bowl and heat in 5 seconds bursts until melted, making sure to stir between each heating. Dip one corner of cookie into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set.
Tieghan Gerard says
YES! Bring on the baking and butter! 🙂 These are gorgeous and I think you so cute you guys always plan something for V-day!
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
You had me at chocolate and hazelnut, love these!
Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness says
I’ve been cooking with hazelnuts a lot lately. They just SCREAM love and romance to me.
And these cookies scream EAT ME, and I can definitely get back on the cookie train for them! Pinned!
Simone says
Looks delicious! Perfect snack with tea or coffee, and I LOVE hazelnut.
June Burns says
Those look awesome! I’m sure they’d go delightfully with coffee 🙂
Jennifer+Farley says
I LOVE shortbread. You have indeed lured me with these beautiful cookies!
Brian @ A Thought For Food says
From now on, I’m going to call biscotti “dunkers.” It sounds oddly British. 🙂 Love these flavors… wish I had a batch to go with my morning coffee.
NanDee says
What do I use instead of vegetable shortening, which I not sure I can get in England. Is butter OK? The same amount?
molly yeh says
can we have one big giant wedding for chocolate and hazelnut?? what a couple. these look so great!!!
Heather+Christo says
these are gorgeous Naomi! I am going to try to make some like these that I can eat! (GF/DF/EF)- lol! I will let you know if they work!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
Definitely the perfect dunkers. Yum!
Annalise @ Completely+Delicious says
Bring on the baking recipes! Love these little dunkers.
Jenny Flake says
Droooooling! These are gorgeous Naomi!
Tori@Gringalicious.com says
Cookies over cake must just be a guy thing because my dad and brothers are te same way. These sound like the perfect thing to cover all the chocolate bases for V-day
Medha @ Whisk & Shout says
Yum yum yum yum yum! Hazelnut shortbread?! I’m here for it. Pinning!
Rebecca @ DisplacedHousewife says
YES!!! Bust out the butter and flour. I’ve spent the entire month trying to make healthy stuff…I threw in the towel last week. TOOO much! These look positively delicious. I’m gonna have to try these. xx
Maria says
That’s my kind of cookie! delish!!
Cecily @ Burnt Butter Bakery says
Okay, these for DEFINITELY getting made. Perfect for dunking into a cup of tea.
Justine@CookingandBeer says
I see a latte and this cookie in my immediate future! Yum! P.S. I wish I had your dedication in always having something planned for V-Day!
Tara+@+Deliciously+Declassified says
Those look perfect for coffee dunking!
Gaby says
These cookies are perfection! I am drooling right now!!!
marla says
You sure can lure me into the kitchen with these cookies!!!!
Cassie @ Cassie's Kitchen says
Oh wow, these look incredible!!! Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Cake Chocolate Cheese says
I’m with Matt… I reach for cookies first too! And shortbread is always wonderful, but dipped in chocolate is just like taking it to a whole new level. Awesome recipe!
Cindy says
You can use paraffin wax. You should be able to find it by the canning supplies.
Connie says
You have agave (nectar?) listed in the ingredients but not in the directions. Does agave het added to the batter or is that a typo?
plasterer+bristol says
yummy. This sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing this.
Simon
Kayleigh says
Made these for my family, they absolutely loved them! Made a second batch without the nuts, cut the time down by a few minutes and they made an awesome thin cookie. Such a good recipe!
marina says
can i use walnuts in place of hazelnuts??
Jenny says
Hi Naomi! This recipe includes agave in the list of ingredients but agave is not included in the instructions. Does this recipe need agave or was this just a typo? Thanks!!!
Crissy says
These look great. I’m attempting them now and the dough is super crumbly and dry. When I try to put them on the plastic wrap to turn them into rectangles the dough just crumbles into pieces. Do you have a suggestion?