These are my favorite Christmas cookies—my mom has made them every year for as long as I can remember. No matter where I live, she always makes sure to send me a batch so I have a little piece of home for the holidays if we can’t be together. I try to make them myself, but somehow, mine never taste quite as good as hers.
Ingredients:
For the base:- 150 g all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 65 g sugar
- 1 egg
- 65 g cold butter, cut into cubes
- 100 g sugar
- 3–4 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 100 g finely chopped hazelnuts
- 100 g almond flour
- 100 g unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1 jar apricot jam
- Bittersweet or dark chocolate, for dipping
Instructions:
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, egg, and cold butter. Knead quickly into a smooth dough. Wrap and chill if needed. Then roll out into a rectangle and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
In a small saucepan, heat sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Stir in vanilla, then add chopped hazelnuts, almond flour, and coconut. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens into a spreadable paste. Set aside to cool.
Spread a generous layer of apricot jam over the rolled-out dough. Then evenly spread the cooled nut mixture over the jam layer.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake for 30–35 minutes, or until the top is golden and set. Let cool completely on the baking sheet.
Once cooled, cut into triangles. Dip one or two corners of each piece into tempered bittersweet chocolate. Place on parchment to set.