Baci di Dama Italian Cookies
User Reviews
4.9
Baci di Dama Italian Cookies
Description
Baci di Dama Italian Cookies rely primarily on finely ground hazelnuts combined with all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and sugar to create a soft yet crumbly cookie dough. Cold butter and vanilla extract enrich the dough, which is chilled for shaping. The dough is portioned into small balls, flattened slightly, and baked until just beginning to brown. This careful baking produces a delicate texture, with a tender center and lightly crisp exterior.
After cooling, two cookies are joined with a semi-sweet chocolate filling, creating the characteristic "lady's kisses." The chocolate complements the rich hazelnut flavor, providing a smooth, sweet contrast to the nutty, crumbly cookie.
These cookies are best served with tea or coffee and can be shaped smaller by rolling the dough into ropes and slicing, shortening the bake time. Using roasted, skinned hazelnuts ground to a fine texture is key to their signature taste and texture.
Substitutions like rice flour or nut flours can alter texture slightly and require adjustments. The cookies keep well and can be made in advance for gatherings or gifting.
Ingredients
Italian Cookie Ingredients
- 2 cups hazelnut roasted, skinned (2 cups = 240g
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 4 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 5 oz butter cut to small pieces, cold unsalted
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Baci di Dama Chocolate Filling
- 1 cup chocolate chips semi-sweet
Instructions
How to Make Italian Cookies
- Line 2 baking sheet pans with parchment paper, set aside. Pulse the hazelnuts in a food processor or a coffee grinder until mostly flour-like with some pieces that still retain texture.
- In a large mixer bowl whisk together ground hazelnuts, flour, sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Add the cold cubed butter, vanilla extract and mix until a dough forms with no visible butter chunks.
- Using a small ice cream scoop, portion the dough into about 2 teaspoon chunks, then roll each one into a ball. You'll get about 40 dough balls. Set Italian cookies onto the prepared baking sheet about 1.5 inches apart. Slightly tap on top of each hazelnut cookie ball to flatten. See *recipe notes* for how to shape and bake smaller sized cookies.
- Chill cookies in the fridge for 1 hour. About 45 minutes into it, preheat the oven to 325 degrees with the baking rack in the middle. Bake cookies for about 17 to 18 minutes, or until just starting to brown on top. Remove from oven and cool completely.
How to Assemble Italian Cookies
- In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chocolate chips in 10 to 15-second intervals, stirring occasionally until the chocolate chips have melted half way (about 2 minutes). Then, continue stirring until the rest of them have melted completely.
- Spread 1 teaspoon of melted chocolate onto the bottom half of the cookies. Cover with the other half and press to adhere. Allow to sit undisturbed until the chocolate has set, about 30 minutes.
Notes
- Use roasted, skinned hazelnuts finely ground for best texture and flavor.
- Chill the dough thoroughly before shaping to help maintain cookie structure during baking.
- For smaller cookies, roll dough into ropes and slice, reducing baking time accordingly.
- Replacing flours with rice flour or using almond flour will affect texture and cooking time.
- Fill cookies with a modest amount of semi-sweet chocolate to maintain balance between nutty dough and sweet filling.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 20sandwich cookies
Amount Per Serving
Calories 117 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 117kcal | 6% |
| Carbs | 9g | |
| Protein | 1g | 2% |
| Fat | 8g | 12% |
| Saturated Fat | 3g | 15% |
| Cholesterol | 7mg | 2% |
| Sodium | 15mg | 1% |
| Potassium | 69mg | 1% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 5g | 10% |
| Vitamin A | 90IU | 2% |
| Vitamin C | 0.4mg | 0% |
| Calcium | 11mg | 1% |
| Iron | 0.7mg | 4% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.9
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