These little cookies melt in your mouth because the nuts are ground almost to a paste. They’re one of my favorites for the holiday tray, and the dough and baked cookies both freeze well, so you can get ahead of the rush. You can swap the hazelnuts for pecans, almonds, or walnuts, whatever you like best.
Makes about 4 dozen
Ingredients
- 2 cups peeled (blanched) hazelnuts
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- ½ tsp fine Himalayan pink salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
- Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting
Directions
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment. Set aside. Spread the nuts on a rimmed baking sheet and bake 7 to 10 minutes, stirring halfway, until toasted and very fragrant. Cool. Lower the oven to 325°F.
- Process the cooled nuts in a food processor until they’re on the verge of becoming hazelnut butter: moist pieces holding together, but not completely smooth.
- Add the sugar, butter, vanilla, and salt and pulse until smooth, scraping down the sides once or twice. Add the flour and pulse once or twice, just until incorporated.
- Transfer to a bowl and form into 1" balls. Place on a cookie sheet and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until dry and faintly colored.
- Cool on the pan for 5 minutes, dust generously with Confectioner's sugar, then move to a rack to cool completely. Before serving, dust with a bit more confectioner’s sugar as the cookies absorb the sugar as they cool.
Tip: The dough freezes well, and so do the baked cookies.
Looking for a second cookie? Try our Swedish Butter Cookies.