Baci di dama

Baci di dama are gorgeous little hazelnut and chocolate biscuits from Piedmont, the northwestern pocket of Italy that I called home for some years. The area is known for growing beautiful hazelnuts (it claims to be the home of Nutella), and every cafe and patisserie in the region sells baci di dama (ladies kisses) by weight. I remember friends coming over to dinner with little waxed bags of baci di dama to share with coffee.

Bring a bag of these and a coffee to work for an extra nice colleague and it will make his or her day. They are a touch crumbly while still warm, so be gentle with them. Good fresh hazelnuts are the key here.

Makes 20

1 cup (135g) hazelnuts, toasted and skinned

3⁄4 cup (130g) rice flour

2 Tbsp plain flour or glutenfree plain flour 100g chilled butter, cut into cubes

2 Tbsp icecold water 1⁄3 cup (75g) caster sugar 1⁄2 cup (75g) chopped dark chocolate

Method

Using a food processor, blitz the hazelnuts into a fine meal. Add the rice flour, plain flour, butter, water and sugar. Blitz for about 10 seconds or until the mixture is just coming together. Turn out on to a work surface and bring together into a rough dough. Form the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180degC. Line two large baking trays with baking paper.

Pull out a piece of dough about the size of a marble, roll it into a ball between your hands and place on one of the trays. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until just golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Spoon a little on to a cookie and sandwich with another cookie, then repeat with the remaining cookies.