Malted Milk Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Cookies

My husband and I eat out quite a lot, and sometimes we just want to try something different. One Saturday we were out for lunch. We went to Woodinville, WA, which is not too far from where we live. Woodinville is full of wine tasting rooms. While the grapes are grown on the east side of the state, the wineries have all set up shop in Woodinville, on the west side of the state. As the area grows, new restaurants keep popping up. We’d planned to go to a brewery that day, but instead ended up at the Hollywood Tavern. We had a great lunch!

We don’t normally order dessert at lunch, but they had a number of items that we couldn’t resist. On their dessert menu they had the inspiration for these cookies: milk chocolate hazelnut malted cookies. Theirs had a Nutella dip, but I didn’t go that far! I knew I could put together a cookie that was similar, so we ordered a different dessert.

I knew that my friend Peabody really likes using malted milk powder, so I turned to her blog for a recipe that I would start with. I then just changed the add-ins, to milk chocolate chips and hazelnuts. The dough for these cookies is very soft, and they spread so quickly when baked. I ended up chilling the dough and that helped some, but they are fairly thin. That makes the chips and hazelnuts stick out, so that’s not so bad at all! I loved this combination of chocolate and hazelnuts; now I just need to go back to the restaurant and see how close my version is to their version!

Malted Milk Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Cookies

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

¼ cup malted milk powder

1 cup butter, room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups milk chocolate chips

1 cup toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and the malted milk powder. In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixer running on low, gradually beat in flour mixture. By hand, stir in the milk chocolate chips and hazelnuts. Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour (or up to several days).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Using a small cookie scoop, scoop tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on the baking sheets for several minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe Adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody