Nutella Filled Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies

These cookies are chocolaty and very soft and gooey on the inside. And the best part is the Nutella center! With the roasted hazelnuts and little pools of melted chocolate, these cookies are heavenly. This is a very easy recipe so let's talk about the ingredients first :

• Butter : I prefer using unsalted butter because it allows you to adjust the amount of salt however you like. But if you only have salted butter on hand it's completely fine just skip the 1/2 tsp of salt.

• Sugars : You need both caster sugar and brown sugar for these cookies to turn out perfect. Both sugars play an important role in not only the taste but also the texture of the cookie. I would also not recommend reducing the amount of sugar as it would change the texture.

• Eggs : This recipe calls for whole eggs plus egg yolks for that extra gooey and soft center.

• Instant coffee powder : You can leave it out if you don't like coffee but the coffee powder in this recipe is just to intensify the chocolate flavor and you cannot taste the coffee at all.

• Chocolate : Please use good quality chocolate chips. It makes a huge difference. If you cannot find good quality chocolate chips just chop up a nice bar of dark chocolate and use that instead.

• Hazelnuts : Using roasted hazelnuts gives a deeper flavor.

Servings : 16

Ingredients :

• Nutella - 140g

• Butter - 200g

• Caster sugar - 80g

• Brown sugar - 120g

• Eggs - 80g

• Egg yolk - 20g

• Instant coffee powder - 1 tsp (optional)

• Baking soda - 1/2 tsp

• Salt - 1/2 tsp

• Flour - 290g

• Cocoa powder - 30g

• Dark chocolate chips - 80g

• Roasted hazelnuts - 80g

• Flaky sea salt (optional)

Instructions :

1. On a parchment paper, pipe or spoon all of the Nutella into 16 equals portions. Place them in the freezer to solidify till we prepare our dough.

2. Melt the butter until it's almost melted. It will continue to melt even after it's off the heat. Let the butter cool slightly.

3. Add in the sugars and whisk until everything is well combined.

4. Add the eggs and egg yolks in two additions whisking well in between each addition.

5. Add in the instant coffee powder and whisk again.

6. Now sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Fold it gently using a spatula until almost combined. It's okay if there are a few streaks of flour left. Do not overmix. Please use a kitchen scale because it gives accurate results every time. Cup measurements are highly inaccurate so I would not recommend using cups.

7. Add in the chocolate chips and chopped roasted hazelnuts but reserve a few to add on top before baking. Fold again until they are evenly distributed.

8. Scoop out 16 equal cookies using an ice cream scoop onto a plate.

9. Refrigerate the scooped dough for at least an hour or overnight. This ensures that your cookies remain soft on the inside after baking.

10. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

11. Take the scooped cookie dough and Nutella out of the fridge and flatten the dough slightly using your palms. Now place one portion of the solid Nutella in the center of the dough and seal it completely using the sides and roll it into a ball. Repeat with the remaining dough.

12. Place the reserved chocolate chips and hazelnuts on top of each dough ball. Place 8 cookies on the baking sheet and keep some space in between each cookie because they will spread while baking.

13. Bake for 12-15 minutes. They are going to be very soft after baking but they will harden as they cool so don't overbake them.

14. Take the cookies out of the oven and let them cool for about 5 mins on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the flaky sea salt on top of each cookie. It is optional but highly recommended.

15. Now place the cookies onto a cooling rack and let them cool completely before enjoying.

16. Store the cookies in an air tight container at room temperature.