1         Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line 3 or 4 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2         Beat the butter, Love'n Bake™ Hazelnut Praline Paste, sugar and brandy in a mixer fitted with the paddle until fluffy. Stir in the ground hazelnuts (or hazelnut flour), all-purpose flour and salt.  Beat slowly until the mixture forms a smooth dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least an hour before rolling.

3         Roll the dough out approximately ¼-inch thick on a table lightly dusted with flour. Cut the dough into 1 ½-inch circles using a fluted edged cutter. Use a spatula to transfer the fragile dough to the prepared pans. Space the cut-out cookies 1-inch apart on the pan.

4         Bake the cookies on the center rack of the oven until lightly browned, approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Cool the cookies completely on a wire rack before filling.

5         Spread a small amount of the chocolate hazelnut filing on the flat side of one cookie.

6         Sandwich the filling with a second cookie and press tightly to seal.

Variation: Linzer Cookie

1 batch Filled Hazelnut Sandies dough

powdered sugar, as needed

raspberry jam, as needed

When cutting the dough in Step 3, use a small decorative cutter to make a hole in the center of half of the cut-out cookies.  These will be the tops of the finished sandwich cookies.

When ready to fill the cookies, sift powdered sugar over the cookies that will be used as tops of the finished sandwich cookies.  Spread the bottom with raspberry jam then carefully position a powdered-sugar-dusted top on each cookie.