Chocolate Shortbread with Hazelnuts

Chocolate Shortbread with Hazelnuts is truly decadent and sometimes you just need a treat. Made with only 5 ingredients, one bite of these cookies will leave you wanting more!

These shortbread biscuits are big, chunky, nutty biscuits or cookies. They are not delicate little morsels using finely chopped nuts from a bag and a few chocolate chips.

Every bite will give you a crisp, buttery, chocolatey crunch. I promise you will love them and they are really easy to make too.

What are the ingredients?

For this recipe you will need

• 100 g milk chocolate
• 50 g hazelnuts
• 115 g soft butter
• 175 g plain or all purpose flour
• 55 g granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon milk

Rather than use chocolate chips I have used Cadbury's dairy milk because it's my favourite. I didn't want the chocolate to get lost in the mixture or start to melt. Having larger chunks gives the shortbread a serious chocolate hit!

Instead of using chopped nuts I used whole hazelnuts. They often come unblanched, with the skins still on. To remove the skins just tip them into a bowl and pour over boiling water to cover. After a few minutes cooling you can slip the skins off with your fingers and then dry the nuts on some kitchen towel.

How to make the cookies

These chocolate shortbread cookies are very easy to make by hand or in a mixer.

Rough chop the nuts. I prefer to do this by hand but you could pulse a couple of times in a food processor. Be careful, as you want a good crunch.

Break the chocolate and rough chop.

Cream the butter and sugar together until soft and pale.

Add the flour and the chocolate and nuts. The dough should come together but add up to a tablespoon of milk if you need to.

Transfer the mixture to a large piece of clingfilm in a flatish shape. This will make it easier to roll out later.

Put the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or reusable silicon.

Unwrap the dough but leave on the cling film and cover with another piece. I find that it's easier to roll out the dough without it sticking and there is less clearing up this way too.

Roll the dough out to about 1 cm thick. You could also just use the palms of your hand.

Cut 12 pieces with a knife, about 10 cm square. Obviously use a cutter if you prefer but this way there is less re-rolling and wastage. Sometimes it's good to have a rustic shape.

Place into an oven preheated to 180 C / 165 C Fan / 350 F/Gas Mark 4 for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Let the chocolate shortbread rest on the baking tray for a few minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

These cookies will keep in an airtight container for about a week, but I doubt they will last that long! They also make ideal gifts.

Perfect with a hot chocolate!

Variations

• Swap the chocolate and hazelnuts for 50 g of chocolate, 40 g chopped dried cranberries and 40 g chopped pecans for a festive Christmas shortbread
• For a darker shortbread use soft brown sugar and for a lighter one use caster sugar
• Melt 100g of cooking chocolate and dip the shortbread half-way. Allow to dry on a baking rack with kitchen paper underneath
• Use white, plain, (or semisweet chocolate), instead
• Change the hazelnuts for macadamias, walnuts, almonds or brazils

More treats to try

• Raspberry Almond Linzer Cookies
• Chunky Chocolate Cookies
• Crispy Chocolate Rudolph Pops
• Nutty Chocolate Tiffin
• Christmas Shortbread
• Nutella Macarons
• Classic Scones

Food safety

We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove