I decided to update this recipe and post just in time for the holidays! Enjoy, and buon appetito!
I got up early this morning while the house was still blissfully quiet. This is my favorite time to bake; the day is fresh, and I can lose myself in the process. Everything else fades away except my chef’s knife and measuring cups waiting patiently on the counter. The only sounds I hear are the wooden spoon scraping the side of the bowl and the gentle clanking of measuring spoons. Another perk- I am forced to eat cookies for breakfast.
Making cookies always reminds me of my Italian grandmother. Nana and I spent hours of quality time in her kitchen. When we baked cookies or pies, we began by taking out all of the ingredients and tools we would need: measuring cups and spoons, bowls, greased cookie sheets, and so on. We laid everything out in proper order and only then did we begin assembling the ingredients. Sometimes I could not understand her insistence with perfection in the kitchen and in life, but now I appreciate the gifts she gave to me.
I love Florence!
This fall when I was in Florence, I learned this cookie recipe in Stefania Fermi’s Italian cooking class- Fatto in Casa Con Stile (Homemade with Style ). She picked us up in Florence and in fifteen minutes we arrived at her quiet country home in Chianti. We cooked in her adorable kitchen and ate in the garden while sharing a bottle of local Chianti wine. If you plan to visit Florence, I highly recommend taking Stefania’s cooking class. She believes that food is medicine, and her food choices show respect for animals, people, and the planet. She is originally from Emilia-Romagna, lives in Tuscany and teaches traditional dishes from these two regions. She is lively and lots of fun.
Variations: substitute almonds for the hazelnuts, experiment with different toppings or leave them plain. I put raspberries on these right out of the oven.
Flourless Italian Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups powdered sugar (plus a bit more for decoration)
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- 3.5 ounces 70% chocolate bar roughly chopped (or 1/2 heaping cup of semisweet chocolate chips)
- 1 cup hazelnuts, chopped
- 2 egg whites, slightly beaten
- optional garnish – one basket of fresh raspberries.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325° F
- Sift together powdered sugar and powdered sugar. Stir in hazelnuts and chocolate chunks (or chips).
- Add egg whites and and stir to moisten everything thoroughly – will be the consistency of brownie batter.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Drop cookies onto cookie sheet by heaping teaspoons (or use #100 size – extra small- cookie ice cream scoop). Leave 1 inch between cookies as they will expand while cooking.
- Bake for 15 minutes for chewy cookies. Bake for 20 minutes for crunchy cookies. Cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar.Optional garnish: place one fresh raspberry on each cookie.
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These look delicious! What a perfect after dinner treat 🙂
Hi Boowholefoods, Thanks so much! I would love to hear your feedback about the recipe if you try it. I am so glad I learned about your fantastic blog!
Yummy! This dish looks so beautiful!
Hi! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. I am so glad you like the cookies. If you make the recipe, please let me know how it went. Happy baking!
😋 yummy