Browned Butter Hazelnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Yesterday was a very, very special day. I did nothing but made pasta, cookies, ate and watched Nashville alllllll day long! Seriously, how cool is that?

I get to be this lazy only a few days a year! So I cherished it and didn't even care that I've been so good with my diet and now all was for nothing! Well, that is not true and just look at these cookies!

Look how chewy and chocolatey it is!

The cookies were sooo huge, I couldn't eat the whole thing at once. So when I had this leftover, it looked so mouth-watering to me that I just had to snap a picture of it. Even if it looks kinda nothing and ugly :D

So! These are the thick, chewy, extra super chocolatey kind of cookies that I love! I'm not really into the thin and crispy kind when it comes to Chocolate Chip Cookies. I like thin and crispy graham crackers or digestive biscuits, u know the ones you buy at the store. 

But homemade cookies should be thick and not just sweet but full of flavor! In this case, I found that browned butter does the trick. I never make cookies with ordinary butter anymore! I also like salt on top and some nuts thrown in to give it a nice surprise in texture. 

I am also weird. I actually don't like too much chocolate chips or chunks in my cookies. I like only a few, very very few, bites in one. That was my only problem with this recipe. It had too much chocolate! But that's probably just me. And before I forget to mention, I added a bit of maple syrup to make it even more irresistible!

The result was lovely, indeed. Lovely! 

Browned Butter Hazelnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies

1 cup (about 220 grams) butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp maple syrup

1 egg + 1 egg yolk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 handful of hazelnuts 

3/4 cup chocolate chunks or chips

Using a saucepan, melt the butter. It's best if you cut the butter into smaller bits. Keep cooking, the butter will foam a little but just keep cooking and stirring it. When you finally see a change in color (it gets golden), then pay attention because it's easy to burn it. When you have brown specks on the bottom, you should remove it from the heat. Pour the butter into a smaller bowl, cover it with foil and place it in the freezer or fridge until it becomes solid again. About 15-20 minutes in the freezer.

While, you're waiting for the butter to solidify, toast the hazelnuts. Just simply place the nuts in a pan without any grease and cook them over medium-low heat. Stir them frequently and when they're starting to become darkish brown, then place them on a flat surface and let them cool. Once they're cooled down, chop them roughly.

Cream the now solid butter with the sugar and maple syrup. Add in the egg and the yolk, then the vanilla. Mix it. Sift in the flour, then add the baking soda and salt. Mix it together, add in the nuts and chocolate chunks. 

Refrigerate for 1 or 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350F (175C).

Use an ice cream scoop to form the cookie balls. Place them on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. When they're ready, let them cool for 10 minutes before eating. Enjoy! :)