Hazelnut Shortbread

• 3/4 cup (3.25 ounces) filberts (skinned hazelnuts)
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 2 1/3 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 16 tablespoons (8 ounces) butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Food processor
• Stand mixer
• Cookie sheets
• Cookie cutter (optional)
• Decorative wooden rolling pin (optional)

1. Grind the hazelnuts and assemble the dry ingredients:
2. Combine the hazelnuts and 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch in a food processor and grind to a fine powder.
3. In a dry bowl, whisk together the hazelnut powder, remaining cornstarch, flour, and salt, and set aside.
4. Cream the butter (see "Creaming butter" in the Notes section, below):
5. Place the butter in the bowl of the stand mixer with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute.
6. Add the sugar and beat on medium-high speed until the mixture becomes fluffy and almost white, 8 to 10 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
7. This dough has no added leavening agents.
8. It is extremely important to cream the butter well and incorporate as many air pockets as possible into the fat structure.
9. Finish the dough:
10. Add the dry ingredients, all at once, to the butter mixture.
11. Using a rubber spatula, fold together for a few turns.
12. With the mixer on slow speed, mix the dough until thoroughly combined, 1 minute.
13. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap.
14. Wrap the dough tightly and press it into a 1-inch-thick rectangle.
15. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
16. Shape the cookies:
17. Preheat the oven to 350F.
18. Spray cookie sheets with oil and line with aluminum foil, parchment, or silicone pads, or use nonstick pans.
19. Quick Method for Shaping:
20. Using a sharp knife and a cutting board, cut the chilled dough into 1 1/2 x 3-inch bars.
21. Cut each bar into 8 or 9 even slices.
22. You should aim for a raw cookie that is 1 1/2 x 1 x 1/3 inch thick.
23. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
24. Shaping by Rolling and Cutting (see the Note on rolling tart dough):
25. Roll out the dough to 1/3 inch thick.
26. Using a knife and ruler, cut the cookies into perfect rectangles.
27. You may also use a small 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter to punch out shaped cookies.
28. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
29. Refrigerate any remaining dough scraps for 20 minutes before rerolling them.
30. Bake the cookies:
31. Bake the cookies until golden brown and you can smell the wonderful aroma of toasted hazelnuts With butter, 12 to 15 minutes.
32. For even browning, rotate your cookie sheets from front to back and between each of the baking racks at least once while the cookies are baking.
33. Allow the cookies to cool on the sheets.
34. Serving Suggestions:
35. These cookies go well with almost all the recipes in this book.

cornstarch, flour, salt, butter, sugar, processor, cutter, decorative wooden rolling

Taken from www.cookstr.com/recipes/hazelnut-shortbread (may not work)