Hazelnut Nutella Sandwich Cookies

Two melt-in-your mouth cookies get joined together with a thick layer of chocolate Nutella. These hazelnut Nutella sandwich cookies are a delicious way to take your cookies to the next level!

Everything is better in pairs, especially cookies when stuffed with sweet Nutella. After seeing everyone enjoy my chocolate sandwich cookies, I wanted to create another sandwich cookie with one of my favorite sweet treats: Nutella!

I tested this Nutella sandwich cookie recipe with many types of cookie — chocolate, vanilla, shortbread — but found that a simple vanilla cookie with a touch of ground hazelnuts was the perfect base for the Nutella. We can all agree that hazelnuts and chocolate are a match made in heaven, so these hazelnut sandwich cookies are guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser.

Making the hazelnut cookies

The base of these chocolate hazelnut cookies is a vanilla hazelnut cookie. Similar to a shortbread cookie, it has a rich, melt-in-your mouth buttery texture with a nutty flavor from ground hazelnuts. It’s important here to toast your hazelnuts before grinding, as this brings out their nutty flavor.

To make the cookies, grind your toasted hazelnuts in a food processor until they are finely ground (it will resemble almond flour). Add the flour, sugar, and salt and process for a few more seconds, just until combined. Add the chilled butter, cut into cubes, and pulse several times until the mixture becomes crumbly and resembles coarse meal. Be careful not to overdo this step, as your dough will come together more once you add the rest of the ingredients.

Add the egg yolk and vanilla, pulsing until the dough starts to clump together. Your cookie dough will still be crumbly with large clumps, but if it is too dry just add a splash of milk or water if needed. I like to test my dough by taking a small piece in my fingers and pressing it together. If the dough sticks without feeling dry, then I know it is ready.

Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and form it into a disc. Wrap with plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour until firm, or even up to three days if making in advance.

How to make hazelnut sandwich cookies

This chocolate hazelnut cookie recipe is really easy to make once your dough is properly chilled. When your ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC and line baking sheets with parchment paper. By the time you’ve rolled and cut your dough, the oven should be ready!

Remove the discs from the refrigerator and roll out onto a floured surface (you may need to give it a few minutes to warm up). Roll it out until it’s about ⅛ to ¼ inch thick, depending on your preference. I like thinner cookies when making these Nutella sandwich cookies, especially since there will be two in each sandwich.

Cut the dough into rounds using a 2-inch (5 cm) cookie cutter. Transfer the rounds gently with a thin spatula onto the baking sheets. Make sure to place them an inch apart since they spread slightly while baking. Re-roll the leftover dough and repeat the process until you have none left.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, until slightly golden only at the edges. They won’t be golden at the center yet, which is exactly what you’re looking for. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Once cooled, spread ½ teaspoon of Nutella in the center of a cookie and place another cookie on top to form a sandwich. I like to dust half of the cookies with powdered sugar, using these as the top cookie for a fun decoration. These hazelnut Nutella sandwich cookies are an explosion of flavor and texture, perfect for anyone with a sweet tooth!

Other Nutella recipes:

• Nutella banana bread
• Nutella brownies
• Nutella pretzel snack
• Nutella stuffed cookies

Print

Nutella sandwich cookies

Ingredients

• ⅔ cup (65g) blanched toasted hazelnuts
• 2 ¼ cups (315g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (120g) powdered sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks/225g) unsalted butter, cut into ¼-inch cubes and chilled
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon milk or water, if needed
• Nutella, for filling (about 1 cup)

Instructions

1. In a food processor, place hazelnuts and process for a few seconds just until nuts are finely ground. Add flour, sugar, and salt and process for a few seconds more, just until combined. Add butter and pulse several times until mixture becomes crumbly and resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolk and vanilla, and keep pulsing until dough starts to clump together. The dough should be crumbly with large clumps. If dough is too dry, add a bit of milk or water, a little bit at a time. A good way to check if the dough is done is to take a piece of dough and press it between your thumbs – the dough should stick well together without feeling dry. Avoid overworking the dough throughout the process.
2. Turn the dough to a floured surface and form into a disc. Wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour until firm and easy to handle (or up to 3 days).
3. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Line pans with parchment paper and set aside.
4. Roll out dough on a floured surface until it’s about ⅛ to ¼ inch thick (for sandwich cookies I prefer thin cookies). Cut rounds of dough using a 2 inch (5 cm) cookie cutter. Transfer cookies gently using a thin spatula to the prepared baking sheets, placing them 1 inch apart. Reroll leftover dough and cut out more rounds.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are slightly golden just at the edges (they should still be light rather than golden at the center). Let cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
6. If desired, sift powdered sugar on top of half of the cookies. Put about ½ teaspoon of Nutella in the center of the rest of the cookies, then place the cookies with the powdered sugar on top, and press gently.
7. Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.