These macaroons are a chocolate variation of an Italian recipe called brutti ma buoni "ugly but good"! Chocolate plus hazelnuts equals gianduja--a flavour you may have encountered in fine Italian chocolates. Walnuts also work in this recipe. This recipe was for 30 cookies, but I only got 20! I think mine were bigger......Ingredients:
1 cup hazelnuts (filberts)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 square (1 ounce) unsweetened chocolate, chopped. If you don't have unsweetened chocolate on hand, you can make it by combining 3 tbsps of unsweetened cocoa with 1 tbsp of butter or margarine, melted.
1/8 tsp salt
2 large egg whites
1 tsp vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large cookie sheet with foil.
2. Place hazelnuts in a 9 x 9 metal baking pan. Bake until toasted, about 10 to 15 minutes--keep an eye on them so they don't burn! Wrap hot hazelnuts in clean kitchen towel. With hands, roll hazelnuts back and forth to remove skins. Cool.
3. In food processor with knife blade attached, process hazelnuts, sugar, cocoa, chocolate, and salt until nuts and chocolate are finely ground. Add egg whites and vanilla and process until blended.
4. Drop dough by rounded teaspoon, using another spoon to release batter, 2 inches apart, on prepared cookie sheet. Bake until tops feel firm when pressed lightly, about 10 minutes, rotating sheet between upper and lower oven racks halfway through baking. Cool on cookie sheet on wire rack.
