Chocolate Hazelnut Orange Wontons Recipes

CHOCOLATE AND ORANGE HAZELNUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Add the chocolate-hazelnut spread, flour, orange zest, orange juice, egg and salt to a large bowl. Using a hand-mixer, beat on medium-high until thoroughly combined. Fold in the hazelnuts by hand.
• Use a 1 tablespoon size ice cream scoop to scoop balls of the cookie dough straight onto the prepared baking sheets, keeping them 2-inches apart. Bake until the edges are set but the tops are still slightly soft, 13 to 15 minutes
• Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

ORANGE HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE CLUSTERS

Steps:

• Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, not simmering, water, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula to ensure even melting. Remove the double boiler from the heat, remove the top pan containing the chocolate, wipe it dry, and set aside briefly. Replace the water in the bottom pan with lukewarm tap water, set the pan of chocolate on top of this, and stir gently to reduce the temperature of the chocolate (10 to 15 minutes). It will begin to get a bit thicker as it cools. If using a thermometer, it should register 95°F.
• Again remove the top pan of chocolate from the water and replace the water in the bottom pan with tap water that is a few degrees warmer than the chocolate. If using the same thermometer to check the temperature of the chocolate and the water, be sure to dry it completely so no water mixes with the chocolate. Set the pan of chocolate over the pan of warm water. The warm water will hold the chocolate at the correct temperature so that it does not cool too fast.
• In a bowl, mix the hazelnuts thoroughly with the chopped candied orange peel. Stir this mixture into the chocolate, making sure that the nuts and peel are thoroughly coated with the chocolate.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. Spoon out clusters 1 inch in diameter onto the sheet, leaving 1 inch of space between them. Let the clusters set up at room temperature, or chill them in the refrigerator for 15 minutes, then place them in paper candy cups. In a tightly covered container wrapped in several layers of aluminum foil, the clusters will keep for 1 month in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer. The clusters are best served at room temperature.
• VARIATIONS
• Orange Almond Chocolate Clusters: Replace the hazelnuts with toasted, whole, unblanched almonds.
• White Chocolate Orange Almond Clusters: Replace the bittersweet chocolate with white chocolate and replace the hazelnuts with toasted, whole, unblanched almonds.
• Orange Pecan Chocolate Clusters: Replace the hazelnuts with toasted pecans.
• Cherry Almond Chocolate Clusters: Replace the candied orange peel with 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon roughly chopped dried cherries and replace the hazelnuts with toasted, whole, unblanched almonds.
• Cranberry Almond Chocolate Clusters: Replace the candied orange peel with 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon roughly chopped sweetened dried cranberries and replace the hazelnuts with toasted, whole, unblanched almonds.
• White Chocolate Apricot Hazelnut Clusters: Replace the bittersweet chocolate with white chocolate and replace the candied orange peel with roughly chopped dried apricots.

CHOCOLATE CHUNK ORANGE AND HAZELNUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Combine flour, baking soda and 1/8 teaspoon salt in medium bowl; whisk to blend.
• Using electric mixer, beat brown sugar, unsalted butter, grated orange peel and vanilla extract in large bowl until light and fluffy.
• Beat in egg. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Mix in chocolate chunks and toasted hazelnuts.
• Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto 2 ungreased baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.
• Bake cookies until just firm to touch and beginning to brown, about 13 minutes. Transfer to racks; cool. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.).

CROSTATA WITH CHOCOLATE, HAZELNUTS, AND ORANGE

Steps:

• Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven with a baking stone on it, if you have one. Preheat the oven to 350°.
• Roll and press the dough to form the tart shell, as detailed in the box on page 403. Put the shell in the refrigerator to chill.
• Put the 5 ounces of chocolate chunks in a bowl, and set over a pot of very hot water (barely simmering). Stir as the chocolate begins to melt, enabling it to become molten at the lowest temperature. When completely smooth, pour the chocolate into the tart shell, and spread it to cover the dough bottom completely.
• Put the hazelnuts in the food processor, and pulse to chop them into small bits-don't turn them into a powder or paste. Empty the nuts into a bowl, and wipe out the food processor (you don't have to wash it).
• To prepare the orange zest for the filling, rinse and dry the orange, and remove only the outer, colored zest in strips, about 2 inches long, with a vegetable peeler. Stack up a few strips at a time and slice them lengthwise into very thin slivers with a sharp paring knife. Then cut the slivers crosswise into tiny bits, like glitter or small confetti; you should have about 2 tablespoons.
• Now you'll blend the main filling in the processor, adding the ingredients separately; frequently scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is processed evenly. First blend the sugar and butter, processing about 30 seconds, until smooth. With the machine running, drop in the eggs and process for a minute or more, until smooth and slightly thickened (be sure to scrape the sides). Drop in the flour and blend until smooth; scrape the bowl.
• With the machine off, drop in the chopped orange peel, chocolate, and hazelnuts, and pulse for only a second or two to incorporate. Finally, whiz in the orange liqueur for just a second. Take the processor bowl off the base, and scrape the filling from the sides and blade. Stir one last time, and pour it into the tart shell. Smooth the surface with a spatula to form an even layer.
• Set the tart mold on the hot baking stone, if you have one, or on the middle oven rack. Bake for 25 minutes or so, and rotate the mold for even baking. As the filling sets, it will start to crack around the edges (when it starts to crack in the center, it is done). Bake 35 to 40 minutes total, until the filling is puffed, and firm in the center, and a cake tester comes out clean. The tart crust should be nicely browned as well.
• Set the baked tart on a wire rack to cool. If using a tart ring with a removable bottom, remove the ring; slide the tart off the round mold bottom onto a platter if you want.
• Serve slightly warm or at room temperature, with whipped cream, if desired.
• Into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, drop the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Process for a few seconds, to mix the dry ingredients.
• Cut the butter into 1/2-inch pieces, drop them onto the flour, and pulse the machine ten or twelve times, in short bursts, 20 to 30 seconds in all. The mixture should be crumbly, with only a few larger bits of butter visible.
• Drop the egg yolks into the processor and pulse in bursts, just until the dough starts to clump together in bigger crumbs-it won't form a single mass. Scrape out the wet crumbs, press them together, and knead just for a few seconds, to form a smooth, tight dough. Flatten it into a disk, wrap well in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 3 hours or up to a day before using. Freeze the dough for longer keeping.
• Let the chilled dough sit at room temperature for 10 minutes or so before rolling. Thaw frozen dough completely, preferably in the refrigerator, before using.
• For either of the tart recipes here-or anytime you use this dough-follow these basic procedures to line a tart mold, turning the dough into a thin shell. I use a standard 9-inch metal tart mold with a fluted ring and removable round bottom, but this dough can line any 9-inch pan.
• Let the chilled dough soften briefly, but don't let it get too warm. Put the disk of dough in between two pieces of wax paper or parchment (about 1-foot squares) and roll it out to an 11-inch circle: roll from the center, in all directions, trying to stretch the dough evenly. With 12-inch-wide paper, roll to a circle that comes right to the edge.
• Chill the dough circle in the refrigerator after rolling, inside the paper-this always helps. Peel the top paper off the dough, and center it over the tart mold. Peel off the other paper sheet; if the paper doesn't come off easily, chill again, then remove. Press the dough gently down into the mold so it covers the bottom and comes up the sides.
• If the dough is cooperative, it may line the shell perfectly, and all you will have to do is even out the sides. But if it breaks into pieces or is uneven, you can press it into shape with your fingers. Here are some tips that will help you:
• Keep the dough cold: put it in the refrigerator whenever you have trouble.
• Moisten your fingers lightly to press and push the dough without its sticking to you (but don't drip water in the shell). Move dough from thick spots to thin spots, until the bottom is evenly thick all over.
• To shape the sides, press the dough against the fluted rim with your index finger to form an evenly thick wall all the way around. Remove any dough that's higher than the rim by flicking it against the sharp rim; put these bits back in the mold.
• When the shell is finished, chill it in the refrigerator before filling.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT ORANGE POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F Lightly butter a 10-inch bundt pan and dust it with flour.
• In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Thoroughly beat in the eggs, vanilla, and orange peel.
• In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture by thirds, alternating first with the orange juice and then with the milk, and beat well after each addition. Stir in the nuts and chocolate by hand.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes; then turn it out and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

CHOCOLATE CHUNK, ORANGE AND HAZELNUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Combine flour, baking soda and 1/8 teaspoon salt in medium bowl; whisk to blend. Using electric mixer, beat brown sugar, unsalted butter, grated orange peel and vanilla extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Mix in chocolate chunks and toasted hazelnuts.
• Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto 2 ungreased baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies until just firm to touch and beginning to brown, about 13 minutes. Transfer to racks; cool. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.)

CHOCOLATE-HAZELNUT ORANGE WONTONS

Steps:

• Lay wonton skins out on a work surface. Spoon 1 scant tablespoon of chocolate-hazelnut spread onto each wonton. Brush the edges with water using a pastry brush. Lay a wonton wrapper over top and seal, pressing together with fingers.
• Using a round 2 1/2-inch cookie cutter or a glass, cut the wontons into circles, discarding the excess dough.
• Heat a 10-inch saute pan over medium-high heat. Add water and butter to melt. Add chocolate wontons. Cover and simmer for about 3 minutes. Remove cover and let the liquid evaporate. Zest orange over top of the wontons in the pan. Cook over medium heat until the bottoms of the wontons become crispy and release from the pan. (They will stick at first, and will release once they are ready.) Use a flat spatula to help release them. Remove to a plate.
• Serve warm over ice cream with orange segments.