Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies with Espresso Salt
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Chocolate hazelnut cookies are elevated with a sprinkling of flavorful espresso salt. This post is brought to you by SaltWorks®.
The holidays are steeped in tradition, from whether we put tiny villages on our fireplace mantles to the recipes we serve at family gatherings. I always look forward to the buckeye candies my friend makes, and my family has taken to driving around to look at the city holiday lights just like I did growing up.
Because we live so far away from the rest of our family, I keep an eye open for new traditions we can incorporate into our holiday. For me, that includes baking a new cookie each year.
While I love the standard spritz cookies and cheerful gingerbread men, I’m always looking out for something that will make a cookie “my” cookie, the cookie that will stay with me for the rest of my baking days.
I might have found it with this year’s cookie, y’all.
If you’re a Nutella fan these cookies might seem like a no-brainer to you. Hazelnuts? Check. Chocolate? Check. But is that enough to elevate a cookie and make it a mainstay of the season?
Enter the salt.
Not just any salt – these cookies are sprinkled with Fusion® Espresso Brava Sea Salt, giving you just the tiniest hit of coffee flavor that rounds out these cookies in a way you didn’t know was needed.
I have to admit, I didn’t know much about all the different varieties of salt. Sure, I’ve used Himalayan pink salt, chunky salt harvested from Galveston Bay, and the mainstay kosher salt. But I didn’t really realize how much of a difference salts can make, especially flavored ones.
SaltWorks sent me a box of their high-quality salts to try, and I couldn’t believe how just a small amount of the salt made every recipe I tried it in better. I’m hooked on their salts now, and I keep trying to plan my meals with the flavors in mind.
Because the products from SaltWorks are unprocessed and all-natural, you only need a little bit to make a big difference in your recipes. I love that the flavored salts are naturally infused, making for a pure product that is full of flavor, not additives.
The Espresso Brava salt on top of these cookies gives a salty-sweet hit of satisfaction. If you’re powering through the holidays like I am, you’ll need something special to get you through each day. Why not have it be these cookies?
Reminiscent of pecan sandies, these hazelnut-studded cookies are topped with chocolate ganache before being finished with espresso salt. If you can’t get your hands on espresso salt, try it with large-flake sea salt.
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star review below! It means so much when you enjoy my recipes, so let me know how it goes and leave a comment if you have any questions.
Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies with Espresso Salt
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole hazelnuts
- ½ cup salted butter, softened
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 4 ounces chopped chocolate
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Espresso Brava Sea Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- If your hazelnuts have skins, toast them in a skillet over medium heat, shaking gently. The skins will slip off. Let cool before processing.
- Pulse nuts in a food processor until nuts are about pea-sized.
- Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy, then mix in vanilla and egg. Stir in flour and hazelnuts.
- Scoop dough out by the tablespoon onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Gently press down slightly on each cookie. Bake for 12-15 minutes.
- Melt chocolate and butter together in a small saucepan or in a microwave, whisking to thoroughly combine.
- Top each cookie with a spoonful of chocolate. Sprinkle with a pinch of Espresso Brava Sea Salt.
- Let cookies cool, and if desired, put in the refrigerator to firm up chocolate. Store in a covered container.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate based on online calculators. Any nutritional information found on Stetted should be used as a general guideline only.
More cookie recipes you might like:
- Blueberry White Chocolate Cookies – Stetted
- Coconut Sugar Cookies – Dessert for Two
- Lemon Crinkle Cookies – Bluebonnet Baker
- Mango Madeleines – Stetted
- Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies – My Baking Addiction
Disclaimer: I received a sample of products from SaltWorks for the purpose of review, and was compensated for this post. As always, all opinions are my own.
Mesquite salt has a very special place in my heart. Thank you for the giveaway!
Cannot wait to try these, Megan. I’m totally pumped for holiday baking!
Artisan Fleur de Sel
I think if I were to try the espresso salt, it would be my favorite!
These look amazing…can’t wait to give them a try.
Gorgeous cookies! I love savory with my sweet.
My favorite salt is the pink hawaiian ash or truffle salt hmmm it’s a toss up. I have never heard of those salts and I bet they would be super fun to work with. (Love the recipe you made) I will share this.
Spanish Rosemary!!!
I love Hawaiian Sea Salt!
I’m boring, but I love Maldon as an everyday salt. That vintage merlot salt has me intrigued though!
Vintage Merlot sounds incredible.
I don’t use many specialty salts but would love to try them! I do have and enjoy the lovely Murray River Flake Salt.
The Sea Salt would be a staple in my house but I’d love to try the Black Truffle and Vintage Merlot flavors too!
sea salt I guess. I’ve never really tried any specialty salts before…would love to win these!
What type of chocolate do you use? I know a rich, dark chocolate would be awesome with these cookies, but my kiddo favors milk chocolate. Or maybe I just use what I want, and if he converts to being a dark chocolate lover, all the better! 🙂
@Kay, I used 60% dark chocolate chips because that’s what I had on hand, but I think milk chocolate would be great!
I’m already thinking about sprinkling scrambled eggs with truffle salt, and wondering how brie with a dash of Merlot salt would taste.
Love the idea of espresso salt… could be used for sweet, like your cookies above, or as a rub for steak, pork, etc!
himalyan sea salt
I’d like to use celery salt on scrambled eggs.
I love fancy salt. We regularly use Pink Himalayan Salt, but when I want something really special I’ll use Smoked Black Sea Salt.