A delicious idea for Christmas, with the hazelnut shortcrust pastry recipe I wrote a few days ago. I used this very simple and crumbly base to make some cute hazelnut trees, which I then partially glazed with a classic royal icing. The cookies are really delicious, they keep for several days, and you can also give them as gifts… unless they disappear before then!
If you want, also take a look at these suggestions:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Affordable
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 60Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Seasonality: Christmas, All seasons
- Energy 137.54 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 19.21 (g) of which sugars 13.33 (g)
- Proteins 1.82 (g)
- Fat 6.26 (g) of which saturated 2.92 (g)of which unsaturated 1.75 (g)
- Fibers 0.26 (g)
- Sodium 22.30 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 20 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup hazelnut flour
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup butter (cold)
- 2 egg yolks (40 g)
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 egg whites egg white (approx. 2 egg whites)
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- lemon juice (a few drops)
Tools
- Baking sheet low rim or baking sheet
- Bowl
- Cookie cutter for cookies
- Rolling pin
Preparation
Prepare the hazelnut shortcrust pastry following my recipe, which you can find here.
Wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for a couple of hours.
When it is well chilled, roll it out on the work surface with the rolling pin, to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. If necessary, use a little flour.
I used a steel rolling pin, with practical discs that allow you to roll the dough to an even thickness (you’ll find the link among the tools if you want to buy it).
With a tree-shaped cutter, cut out the cookies and transfer them to a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper. Knead the scraps and cut out more cookies until the dough is used up.
The number of trees obviously depends on the size of the cutter; I managed to make 60.
Place the hazelnut trees in a fan oven at 338°F (or static at 356°F), and bake them for 10-12 minutes.
Do not let them brown too much; when you take them out, they will still be slightly soft and will firm up as they cool. Always adjust the times based on your oven and the size of the cookies.
Allow the trees to cool completely on a wire rack.
They are already great as is, but if you want to make them even more beautiful, you can prepare this simple icing. Put the egg white in a bowl, add a few drops of lemon juice, and start whipping with an electric mixer.
As soon as a light foam forms on the surface, gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, while continuing to whip. After a few minutes, you will get a white and glossy icing.
Dip the cookies in the icing and place them on a tray to dry and harden.
The amount of icing should be enough to cover them all; if you want to decorate only part of them as I did, halve the quantities.
And here are your ready hazelnut trees… delicious and crumbly, perfect to give as gifts!
Tips and notes
You can also make the cookies with different Christmas shapes. In addition to royal icing, you can cover the cookies with dark chocolate; here you can find all the instructions.
The cookies keep for several days, stored in a tin box or glass jar.
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