Christmas time is chocolate time! At least for me it is and I love hazelnuts so what better way than pairing it with chocolate; it's like a match made in heaven. In my house the holidays consisted of a large bowl of shelled mixed nuts. I would dig into those bowls searching for the coveted hazelnut. This year I decided to forgo buying a bag of mixed nuts when I saw a bag of hazelnuts sitting on the shelves in the grocery store. I knew I had to get this recipe done before I cracked open all the hazelnuts and ate them. These brownies are chocolaty, gooey, and absolutely delicious. I'm pretty sure they stand up well on their own but the silky smooth hazelnut chocolate spread on top takes these brownies over the edge and make them sinfully delicious.
2 stick unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 large eggs
2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup Nutella
In a large bowl placed over a double boiler, melt two sticks of butter over medium low heat.
Once melted, add sugar, stir together and continue cooking 1-2 minutes stirring continually. Remove from heat and continue stirring. Add salt and vanilla. Whisking vigorously add eggs one at a time.
Add cocoa powders along with baking powder and whisk until well combined.
Add flour and stir until combined.
Fold in 1 cup of the semi-sweet chocolate chips, along with the bittersweet chocolate chips, with one cup of roughly chopped hazelnuts; I like to have bigger pieces of nuts throughout the brownie.
Place batter into a glass baking dish and spread batter evenly throughout. Bake at 350 degrees for 28 minutes.
While brownies are still warm melt 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips and mix with Nutella. Spread over the brownies and top with finely chopped hazelnuts. Cool for 30-45 minutes before cutting into squares.
Enjoy!
Love Always,
Nina