Stuck at Home, An Early Monday Recipe

As I wait and watch the DirecTV installer work on returning TV to my life, I was also wondering what recipe I might put up for tonight. Last week, I was sent a link by C in DC to this site. It is written by a Parisian woman living in Montmarte. She lived for a time in California. She is not a professionally trained cook, but has really good recipes. The site recently celebrated its fourth anniversary. To honor the site, I "borrowed" this recipe for today's recipe. Enjoy!

Cubes à la Noisette

• 150 g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 Tbsp rum
• 6 Tbsp vegetable oil
• a pinch of salt
• 130 g all-purpose flour
• 70 g whole-wheat flour

Caramelized hazelnuts:

• 120 g whole hazelnuts
• 60 g sugar
  (Makes about 100 pieces.)

Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F).

Start with the caramelized hazelnuts. Heat up the 60 g of sugar in a small non-stick saucepan over medium heat. When it is completely dissolved into caramel, dump in the hazelnuts and stir quickly with a wooden spoon to coat. Transfer the hazelnuts onto a silicon baking mat or a sheet of parchment paper, spreading them with the spoon to get them in just one layer.

In a food processor, mix the eggs and the sugar until fluffy. Add in the oil, the vanilla and the rum, mix again. Add in the flours and salt, mix again. The dough should resemble cake batter : liquid but thick. Pour this into a baking dish (33 x 20 cm or 13'' x 9''), ideally nonstick, greased otherwise. Even out the surface with a spatula.

When the hazelnuts have completely cooled, break each hazelnut apart, making sure you keep them nicely in one piece. Place the caramelized hazelnuts in even rows across the surface of the batter (the more regular, the easier it will be to cut out the cubes).

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the top is lightly golden. Let cool for 5 minutes, and cut into small cubes, each one topped with one hazelnut. Lift out the cubes carefully, arrange them on a cookie sheet and leave inside the turned off oven for 30 minutes, to dry the edges out a bit. Cool down completely before serving, and store leftovers in a metal box at room temperature.