Triple Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies

Need I say more? Well, I do, but about this summer's must-watch show.

If I know Nutella fiends, I know you could care less what I have to say and want to get straight to the recipe. And since this is Substack, and not some SEO-on-steroids food blog that insists you see 58 ads before you get to the damn recipe…

I’ll be brief: These cookies are made with a mixture of all-purpose and hazelnut flour to cut some of the sweetness, add a bit of nutrition and give a slightly grown-up edge. (Daughter who initially sneered at the idea of hazelnut flour in these, admitted the cookies were good and even made happy, animal-like sounds while eating them. [And I’m sure she’s glad I put that out there. Hi, Sweetie!])

You have a few choices on how to top your cookies and how long you bake them, depending on if you’re in the mood for crispy or crun-chewy.

Enough! I will keep you from the recipe no longer.

Triple Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Triple Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: About 4 dozen

What You’ll Need:

6 ounces (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup (75 grams) Nutella + 1/2 cup (150 grams) Nutella + more for topping cookies

3/4 cup (160 grams) light brown sugar

3/4 cup (156 grams) white sugar

1 large egg + 1 YOLK

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons (180 grams) all-purpose flour

3/4 cup (85 grams) hazelnut flour (method below)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup (160 grams) dark/semi-sweet chocolate chips

How To

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, hazelnut flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

3. Using a hand/stand mixer, blend the butter, white and light brown sugars until light and fluffy, like a cute widdle kitten. Seriously, the mixture should lighten in color and texture.

4. Add the eggs and vanilla and blend well.

5. Add the 1/4 cup (75 grams) of Nutella and mix on medium speed. Scrape down those sides and mix until just uniform.

6. Add the flour mixture in two additions. Scrape down the sides after each addition. (Hazelnut flour tends to hide in the dimple at the bottom of my Kitchen Aid mixing bowl.)

7. Use a spatula to fold in the 1/2 cup (150 grams) Nutella and the chocolate chips into the mixture. Streaks of Nutella should remain.

8. Scoop the dough onto the prepared cookie sheets with at least 2 inches between them, as they spread. Here’s where you have choices:

   a. Leave the dough plain and pop them into the oven.

   b. Make an indent about 1/4 way deep into each cookie with your thumb (wetting it slightly will keep your finger from sticking to the dough) and fill it with a small amount of Nutella.

9. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-14 minutes until set and starting to brown. If you want a crispier cookie, let the edges brown.

10. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

To make roasted hazelnut flour:

(Trader Joe’s and Nuts.com, among other places, sell already roasted hazelnuts)

1. Spread hazelnuts on a cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven until the start to smell, well, nutty and have a light color on them. If the nuts have skins, pour the tray of nuts onto a cloth towel, fold the towel over the nuts and rub to remove the skins. Let cool.

2. In a food processor with the blade attachment, and using cooled hazelnuts (warm ones will turn quickly to nut butter), pulse the nuts very fine and fluffy. Rub some between your finger tips to check how gritty. The finer/smaller you can get the nuts the better. Sweep around the edges of the bowl to make sure all the nuts are evenly chopped. A few too many pulses and you will end up with nut butter.

Other Updates for Today:

I am working on some kitchen history posts, so you have a break from non-stop recipes.

Also in the works are some recreations of favorite dishes I had while in Italy, including a dreamy tart made with a tender shortbread pastry and filled with jam, aka, crostata di marmellata.

TV recco: Please do yourself a favor and watch “Good Omens” on Amazon Prime. It’s from the genius minds of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (RIP) and season 2 has just landed. It stars David Tennant, Michael Sheen and Jon Hamm…with Frances McDormand as the voice of God and a whole host of people you will recognize. It also is a fantastic book, replete with very funny footnotes. I’ll let the season 1 trailer do the explaining:

In animal news: Bosco found every piece of poison ivy at the local park today and walked through it. I’m just waiting for a rash to appear on me, she said, as she ran to the mirror to check why her eye was itching so.

I’ve loved nasturtiums since I saw them growing all over the hillsides near San Diego. This year I branched out from the usual yellow and orange and ordered these fabulous things. Whaddya think?

This substack is a reader-supported publication. If you’re able, paying for a subscription helps pay for groceries for recipe-testing, recipe development, and supports me—a freelance writer. The pay scale for journalists and writers has not kept up with the cost of living. That’s why having a substack newsletter has become such a terrific venue for so many writers. Best of all, however, it puts me, Bosco, Calvin and Clyde in touch with our readers like never before. Thank you.

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