christmas cookies - part III

HAZELNUT BUTTONS/HASELNUSS KNOEPFEN

This is probably the easiest and quickest Christmas cookie recipe you will ever take on but it’s also quite possibly the most delicious. This recipe was given to me years ago by a no-nonsense German grandmother and it’s served me well since. The only amendment I’ve made was to utilize a mix of hazelnuts and walnuts but this is optional. So why go nuts with all that holiday baking this year when you can bake those nuts, that’ll show’em! 

INGREDIENTS:

makes about 20 cookies

200 g softened butter

200 g sugar

2 packets vanilla sugar

2 eggs

200 g chopped Hazelnuts (or a mix of Hazelnuts and Walnuts), plus 20 whole hazelnuts for decoration

200 g oat flakes (quick oats work best, do not use whole oats or steel-cut)

4 Tb flour

4 Tb rum

2 packets baking powder

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 390 F
2. In a bowl, whisk together butter, sugar, vanilla sugar, and eggs until well incorporated
3. To this add the chopped nuts (I like them to be chunky but not too large so I use a mortar and pestle or a rolling pin to get the consistency I want), stir with a wooden spoon
4. Add the oat flakes, stir
5. Finally add the flour, rum, and baking powder and stir until well incorporated
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper then using a teaspoon scoop up the mixture and spoon onto the sheet making sure there is at least 2 inches between each as they spread out. Place a whole hazelnut in the centre of each cookie
7. Bake in oven for 10 minutes or until the sides of the cookies just begin to turn golden brown – you may only need 8 minutes in the oven