Hazelnut & caramel cookies – Cedric Grolet

Method :

Hazelnut paste :

• 1)

  In a food processor or blender, blend all the ingredients together until you get a smooth paste that looks like peanut butter consistency.

Caramelised hazelnut :

• 1)

  The pictures in this section were taken when I was making my praline, I have put them here for you to have an idea of ​​the caramelization of the hazelnuts. Personally, I didn’t crush the cookies in the caramelized hazelnuts as indicated in the chef’s recipe, but I preferred to decorate the cookies after baking with a few caramelized hazelnuts.

  Place the hazelnuts in a baking sheet, and roast them at 160C for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside while preparing the caramel.

  In a saucepan, cook the water and sugar until it reaches 116C, then add the hazelnuts, stir until the hazelnuts are completely caramelized. The mixture will sand initially which is normal but continue to stir constantly to prevent the sugar from burning which may give a bitter taste to the hazelnuts.

   

  

  

  Remove the hazelnuts from the heat, and pour them in a baking sheet lined with baking paper or a silicone mat. Let cool completely (at room temperature).

   

  

  Place the caramelized hazelnuts in a food processor to coarsely chop them or just use the knife to be sure not to grind them into powder or to chop them too finely.

   

Cookies dough :

• 1)

  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachement, mix the butter with the sugars and the hazelnut paste. Then add the lightly beaten whole eggs. It’s very important to not overwork to not  incorporate too much air, otherwise the mixture will foam and the cookie will spread out during baking.

  Once the eggs have been incorporated into the mixture, add the flour, the fleur de sel and the baking soda. Don’t overwork the dough, once the flour is completely incorporated stop the robot. Finish by adding the coarsely chopped hazelnuts.

  Refrigerate for one hour, before forming 25g or 30g balls, then crush them in the chopped caramelized hazelnuts (personally I crushed the balls in non-caramelized roasted hazelnuts and I decorated my cookies after baking with some caramelized hazelnuts, it’s up to you to see what suits you best).

   

  

  Place the balls on a baking sheet covered with baking paper or a silicone mat, and refrigerate for an hour or more. It’s also important to let the cookies rest before baking,  which will also prevent the cookie from spreading when you bake them.

   

Hazelnut praline :

• 1)

  Start by roasting the hazelnuts for 15-20 minutes at 150C.

  Then make a dry caramel with the sugar, once you reach a nice amber color, remove from the heat and pour it on a baking sheet covered with baking paper or on a silicone mat. Leave to cool before mixing everything in a food processor or blender until you obtain a smooth praline.

  All the steps to make the praline are HERE.

Caramel :

• 1)

  In a saucepan, heat the liquid cream, the milk, the glucose (2), the vanilla (split in half and scraped to recover the seeds) and the fleur de sel.

  Then cook the sugar and glucose (1) to 185C, deglaze with the hot cream (be careful of splashes), continue to cook while stirring gently with a spatula or wooden spoon.

  Once the caramel reaches 105C, remove it from the heat and let it cool at room temperature until it reaches 70C. At this point add the cold butter cut into cubes and the hazelnut paste. Mix with an immersion blender to obtain a smooth and shiny mixture.

Baking and assembly :

• 1)

  After an hour of resting in the fridge, preheat your oven to 160C. The baking will be done in two stages.

  Place the balls in a baking sheet covered with baking paper (or according to the chef a Teflon sheet (personally I avoid)), and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, pipe three dots of praline inside each  cookie, circle the cookies (As for chocolate cookies – video HERE). Put back in the oven for another 2 minutes, having turned the baking sheet.

  When it comes out of the oven, pipe three dots of caramel (above the cookie, not inside).

• 2)

  Once the cookies are at room temperature, decorate with three dots of caramel, praline and a few caramelized hazelnuts

  Enjoy !!