Chocolate Fudge Hazelnut Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of all purpose unbleached flour
• 1 tablespoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt
• 1 tablespoon of brandy or rum
• 1-1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 7 ounces of unsweetened chocolate
• 6 ounces of bittersweet chocolate
• 1 stick or 1/2 cup of unsalted butter
• 7 whole eggs at room temperature
• 2-3/4 cup of vanilla sugar or granulated sugar
• 2 cups of toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• 1-1/2 cups of white chocolate chunks

Directions:

Preheat oven 350°F.

Sift dry ingredients and set aside. Bring water to a boil in a double boiler. Turn off heat. Place chocolate and butter in the top of the double boiler. Stir until melted.

While chocolate is melting, beat eggs with a whisk attachment of an electric mixer until light and fluffy about 6-8 minutes. Add the melted chocolate, vanilla and brandy to the egg mixture. Mix on low speed just until blended. Mix in the dry ingredients just until blended on low speed. Fold in the nuts and white chocolate chips with a spatula by hand. Cover dough with plastic film. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. The dough keeps up to one week in the refrigerator. Stored in an airtight container.

Scoop dough with a 4-0z scoop or 1/4 cup measuring cup. Place cookies three inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat. Bake at 350°F for about 10-12 minutes just until the top crackles yet the interior remains moist. Let cookies set for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before moving them to a cookie rack. Store in an airtight container.

Yield 4 dozen large cookies.

Recipe credit: Chef Carolyn Kumpe of the EBRS Culinary Center, Sacramento, CA