Welcome to Class of Cookie 2023: A (deliciously) special project where Mumbai-based chef Prateek Bakhtiani, Head Chef at Ether Atelier Chocolat invites ten of his closest friends-of-food and asks them to share a ‘comfort cookie’ recipe each.
The French macaroon’s distant cousin, Ricciarelli is an Italian gluten-free cookie that is traditional to the Tuscan region of Siena. Typically, these delicious almond-flavored cookies have a crispy outer layer and a chewy, dense inside. Chef Tejasvi Chandela is a Jaipur-based pâtissier, founder of Dzurt Patissierie and co-founder of All Things Chocolate. Her version of this comfort cookie adds a festive spin with orange and hazelnut. Sit back with a cup of espresso and Ricciarelli as you indulge in some dolce far niente.
Makes: 20 Cookies
Per cookie serving: 25g
Shelf Life: 5–7 Days
Tasting Notes: Hazelnut, orange, almond
Ingredients
100g almond powder
100g hazelnut powder
200g caster sugar
50g hazelnuts, roughly chopped, plus extra to decorate
0.5g salt
60g egg whites
1.5g orange zest
0.5ml orange oil (optional)
2ml orange blossom water
To Decorate (optional)
dark chocolate caramel
roasted hazelnut halves
candied oranges
Preparation
In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond powder, hazelnut powder, caster sugar, chopped hazelnuts, and salt.
Add in the egg whites, orange zest, and orange oil (optional) to the dry ingredients and combine to form a dough. To the dough, add orange blossom water to boost the citrus flavour.
Shape the dough into rounded ovals and dust the top with icing sugar and chopped hazelnuts.
Bake the cookies in an oven at 160°C for 10–12 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool off completely before serving.
Alternatively, you can garnish the cookies with dark chocolate caramel, roasted hazelnut halves, and candied oranges.
Pastry chef and chocolatier Tejasvi Chandela received her Pastry Diplome at Le Cordon Bleu, Paris. She also has a Masters in Chocolate Making from EPGB, Barcelona. She was featured in an episode of ‘Masters of Taste’ with Masterchef Australia’s Gary Mehigan.
Prateek Bakhtiani is an alumnus of Le Cordon Bleu, Paris, where he learnt the art of pastry making. He has served as a chef at several Michelin-starred restaurants in France, Belgium, and the United States.
