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Hazelnut Nascondini Cookies

17/11/2023

Hazelnut Nascondini cookies are delicious little sweets with a surprise hazelnut cream heart that creates a pleasant contrast with the crispy shortcrust pastry. Here’s how to prepare them.

Ingredients

  • 250 g of all-purpose flour
  • 100 g of cold butter, cut into pieces
  • 100 g of sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • A pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • Vanilla essence to taste
  • Hazelnut cream as needed (for the filling)
  • Finely chopped hazelnuts as needed (for garnishing)

Preparation

  1. In a large bowl, mix the flour with the sugar, baking powder, and a pinch of salt.
  2. Add the cold butter in small pieces and work the mixture with your fingertips until it has a sandy appearance.
  3. Make a well in the center and add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla essence. Knead quickly until you get a smooth ball.
  4. Wrap the shortcrust pastry in cling film and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
  5. Preheat the oven to 180 °C. Take the shortcrust pastry and roll it out with a rolling pin until it is about 4-5 mm thick.
  6. Cut out discs with a round cookie cutter, and make a hole in the center of half of the discs with a smaller cookie cutter to create the Nascondino’s “window.”
  7. Place the cookies on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, keeping the whole ones separated from those with a hole.
  8. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until they are lightly golden. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
  9. Once cooled, spread some hazelnut cream on each of the whole cookies and cover with the cookies with a hole, thus creating the “Nascondino.” Gently press to make the two layers stick.
  10. For a final touch, you can garnish the edges of the central hole of the cookies with finely chopped hazelnuts, making them adhere gently to the cream of hazelnuts that peeks out.

Curiosity

Nascondini cookies were named this way because of the cream heart that is “hidden” inside. They represent a sweet surprise and are very much appreciated by both children and adults. For an all-Italian variant, you could enrich the hazelnut cream with a bit of amaretto liqueur, which will give the cookies a very special and irresistible aroma!