Name: Hazelnut Macaroons
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 25
Cuisine: Germany
Ingredients: 2 medium egg whites; 1 pinch of salt; 3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar; 7 oz. (200g) ground hazelnuts; 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon; about 25 whole hazelnuts

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The “12 Days of Christmas Cookies” continues – who would have thought of that seeing these Classic Christmas Hazelnut Macaroons, right? ;) One of my favorite Christmas cookie bakes because I looooove me some hazelnuts. They should be on every baking list for Christmas… right next to Vanilla Crescents and Cinnamon Stars. Just saying ;)

I remember making Hazelnut Macaroons since I was a small kid. I was not allowed to shape the dough portions though, because I would have made a huge mess with the sticky dough, but I was the one that placed the hazelnuts on top and I liked that a lot ;)

Hazelnut and almond macaroons have always been some of my mom’s favorite Christmas cookies. Not always successful, I have to admit. Macaroons can easily turn into a disaster if you bake them too hot or for too long. In that case, they easily turn into little dry and hard jawbreakers. Nobody wants that! That’s why I started baking only 2-3 macaroons at first – as a test, so to speak – you can never predict exactly how the oven will heat up or how much moisture is in the dough. Small differences can lead to a less ideal baking result sometimes.

That’s why it’s better to bake a few macaroons in advance for testing and then adjust the baking time if the result is not quite right. Ideally, the surface of the macaroons is nice and dry after baking but press a finger in the surface, it should still feel soft – that means the inside is also still a bit soft and moist. If the macaroons are dry and hard, you have gone too far ;P

Macaroons should not be stored for a long time – they will get dry and hard over time. Make sure you keep them in an airtight tin box or cookie jar – that will prevent them from getting hard and dry… at least a bit. The ideal macaroon is crunchy on the outside and still soft on the inside.

I once read you can place a half apple in the box with the macaroons for a day or two and the moisture from the apple will soften the cookies again if they got too dry… I haven’t tried it yet, but it sounds quite reasonable – what do you think?

12 Days of Christmas Cookies | Bake to the roots

INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN

(about 25 cookies)

2 medium egg whites
1 pinch of salt
3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar
7 oz. (200g) ground hazelnuts
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
about 25 whole hazelnuts

(ca. 25 Makronen)

2 Eiweiß (M)
1 Prise Salz
150g brauner Zucker
200g Haselnüsse, gemahlen
1/8 TL Zimt
ca. 25 Haselnüsse (ganz)

DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG

1. Whisk the egg whites with the pinch of salt in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the brown sugar while constantly mixing until you get a nice and thick meringue. Mix the ground hazelnuts with the cinnamon and add to the bowl – fold in carefully. You don’t want to deflate the meringue too much. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Use a smaller cookie scoop (or teaspoons) and place about 25 small dough portions on the baking sheet, press a whole hazelnut into each dough portion and let the macaroons dry at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C) and bake the macaroons for about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool down on a wire rack. Store the macaroons in a tin box without other cookies in a cool place.

1. Das Eiweiß mit der Prise Salz in einer großen Schüssel steif schlagen. Den braunen Zucker langsam einrieseln lassen und weiter aufschlagen, bis eine dicke Masse (Meringue) entsteht. Die gemahlenen Haselnüsse mit dem Zimt vermischen und dann zur Schüssel dazugeben – vorsichtig unterheben, damit die Meringue nicht komplett zusammenfällt. Ein Backblech mit Backpapier auslegen. Mit einem Eisportionierer (oder Teelöffeln) etwa 25 kleine Portionen auf das Blech setzen und in jede Teigportion eine Haselnuss drücken. Die Makronen für etwa 1 1/2 Stunden bei Zimmertemperatur trocknen lassen.

2. Den Ofen auf 150°C (300°F) vorheizen und die Makronen dann für etwa 20 Minuten backen. Aus dem Ofen holen und auf einem Kuchengitter abkühlen lassen. Die Makronen in einer Blechdose ohne andere Plätzchen an einem kühlen Ort lagern.

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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.