Name: German Hazelnut Cookies
Yield: About 5 to 7 dozen.
Cuisine: Cookies and Bars
Ingredients: 3 cups (6 sticks) ice-cold unsalted butter; 3 cups all-purpose flour; 3 cups unsifted confectioners' sugar; 3-1/2 cups ground hazelnuts, divided; 3 eggs, well beaten; juice and grated peel of 1 lemon; extra flour (up to 1 cup), for rolling; 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for glaze

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Betsy P. Race won first prize with these seasonal favorites in the 1989 Old Farmer’s Almanac Holiday Cookies and Bars Recipe Contest.

Ingredients

3 cups (6 sticks) ice-cold unsalted butter

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 cups unsifted confectioners' sugar

3-1/2 cups ground hazelnuts, divided

3 eggs, well beaten

juice and grated peel of 1 lemon

extra flour (up to 1 cup), for rolling

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for glaze

Instructions

Cut butter into flour as for pastry. Stir in confectioners’ sugar, then 3 cups of the nuts. Add eggs, juice, and peel. Cover dough tightly with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly, for at least 2 hours. Grease baking sheets and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Working with a small amount of dough at a time (keep the rest of the dough refrigerated), roll out to ¼ inch thick on a well-floured board, also dusting top of dough with flour to aid in rolling. Cut out with cookie cutters and transfer to baking sheets. (Dough may also be dropped by teaspoonfuls; cookies will flatten into brown-edged wafers as they bake.)

Brush cookies gently with egg-water mixture, and sprinkle with pinches of remaining ground nuts. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until golden.