Chocolate Caramel Treasures
For cookies:
1 stick, unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg yolk
2 tbsp. whole milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1/2 cup finely chopped hazelnuts
For caramel filling:
10 plain caramels, unwrapped
2 tbsp. heavy cream
For chocolate drizzle:
3 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Make cookies:
Beat together butter, sugar, yolk, milk and vanilla with an electric mixer until well blended. Sift in flour, cocoa, and salt and beat on low speed until mixture forms a dough. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Roll scant tbsp. of dough into balls, then coat with egg white, letting excess drip off, and roll in nuts to coat. Arrange balls, as coated, 1 1/2" apart on greased baking sheets and press your thumb into center of balls to flatten, leaving a depression. Bake in batches in middle of oven until puffed slightly but centers are still soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press centers of cookies again ( we used handle end of a wooden spoon). Transfer to racks to cool.
Make filling while cookies are cooling:
Heat caramels and cream in a small saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and mixture is smooth. Spoon into centers of cookies and cool completely.
Make chocolate drizzle:
Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth. Cool to warm and pour into a heavy-duty sealable plastic bag. Seal bag and snip 1 corner to forma small hole. Drizzle chocolate over cookies and let stand until set, about 30 minutes.
Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies. Store in a sealed container in a cold place, they may be frozen.
