These German Hazelnut Macaroons, or Haselnussmakronen, are a festive favourite that I have recently discovered, made with just a few simple ingredients. Naturally gluten-free and dairy free, they’re light, chewy, and filled with rich, delicious nutty flavour. Traditionally baked at Christmas time in Germany, these are perfect for the holiday season but also year round as a delicious cookie that is a little bit different.
German Hazlenut Macaroons
Easy German Hazelnut Macaroons, (Haselnussmakronen)
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Category
Dessert
Cuisine
German
Author:
Ashley’s Place
Servings
24
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
20-25 minutes
These delicious German Hazelnut Macaroons (Haselnussmakronen) are apparently a classic Christmas cookie that I have only recently discovered and I was so excited to make them. I think they work perfectly all year round though. There is quite a few different methods for making these and I don't think Vanilla Essence is traditional but we use it a lot in baking so I had to add some in. They have a really unique flavour for a cookie using the Hazelnuts and aren't too sweet either which is nice.
Ingredients
-
250g Hazelnut Meal (See note 1*)
-
3 Egg Whites
-
150g Icing Sugar (powdered sugar)
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½ Tsp of Ground Cinnamon
-
1/8 Tsp of Salt (Half of a ¼ tsp)
-
1 Tsp of Vanilla Essence
Directions
Preheat your oven to 150°C (300°F) and line your baking tray with baking paper or your silicone baking liner. You may need 2 trays depending how big your tray is
Measure out your Icing Sugar so it is ready to go in a separate bowl
Separate your eggs and pop the whites into your mixing bowl, I use my Kitchenaid but you can also use a handheld mixer. Start to mix on a lower-medium speed until you start to see it foam up. Once it is nice and foamy about 1-2 minutes you can start to add in your icing sugar spoon by spoon. You want to turn the mixer on low for this so it doesn’t go everywhere. And continue until it isa all combined. If using a handheld just pop some in and then mix it if you can’t add it while your mixing
Once you have added all the icing in scape down the bowl to mix any icing in and in turn your machine up to a higher setting to continue to whisk for about 8-10 minutes until you get firm peaks. When you get to about 5 minutes in add in the vanilla essence (See note 2*)
While that is mixing you want to mix your remaining dry ingredients, the hazelnut meal, salt and cinnamon
Once the egg mixture forms firm peaks take it off the machine and you then want to add in your hazelnut meal mixture to the egg mixture and fold it through using a spatula or spoon. Do this by hand by folding from the bottom up and over. We want to fold here not mix roughly otherwise we will loose all that beautiful air we got with our eggs.
Once that is all mixed nicely we are going to use 2 tsps to dollop a heaped tsp of the mixture onto our lined baking tray. Leave a few cm’s in-between each cookie on the sheet, they won’t spread too much but we do need a little bit of space. Don’t stress about them being perfect they can look at a little rustic and that is fine, if you want them more round you can shape them with the spoon or use a piping bag to pipe them on, but honestly I just like rustic version. We use the 2 spoons as it can be a bit sticky if you’re trying to roll by hand.
You can pop a hazelnut on top but I didn’t have any, if you do just pop one in the middle
Bake in the oven for about 22-25mins or until baked they will be a little golden on the outside but not too much it’s very slight. 25 mins will be a bit crunchier on the edges with a softer center. If you love crunchy cookies you could bake them longer. Leave them on the tray for about 5-10 mins and then move to a cooling rack to cool completely. They should no longer be sticky and come of the baking paper easily (see note 3*)
Store in an airtight container for about a week or in the freezer for about 3 months
Recipe Video
@_ashleysplace_ ♬ original sound - Ashleys Place
Recipe Note
FAQ's and Notes:
- Hazelnut meal is just ground hazelnuts so if you can't find the meal just grind your own up in a food processer until fine. Just don't over blitz it as it can turn into a paste. Make sure they are shelled though first.
- We are making a meringue here so it should be firm peaks which literally means the peaks hold their shape and stay up. It should be nice and thick as well. If you need help with this please reach out.
- The Macaroons are a sticker cookie when uncooked. If after you have baked them they stick to the baking paper still they may be underbaked so you may need to bake them longer. They should be dry on the outside once they have baked fully and if they are still wet they may need more time in the oven
- You could also add some melted chocolate to these as well, we all know chocolate and hazelnut go well together!
Q. Can I whisk it without a machine?
A: You can do but honestly it will take a while and your arm might get a bit sore whisking that long. You can use a handheld mixer if you don't have a kitchenaid as well.
Q. Can I freeze the cookie dough?
A: You could do but it is quite sticky so I wouldn't recommend it, I would recommend freezing the baked cookies instead as I think this will give a different result