Brutti ma Buoni Recipe (Ugly but Good Cookies)
You only need three ingredients for these hazelnut meringue cookies! A classic Italian treat from the region of Piemonte, Brutti ma Buoni cookies is excellent for snacks or dessert. Try them, and you will surely get hooked!
Servings: 22
Calories: 83kcal
Equipment
- Medium-Sized Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole hazelnuts (170 grams), heaping
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 medium eggs, separated
- powdered sugar, optional
Instructions
Preparing 'ugly but good' cookie batter:
- Using a food processor, combine hazelnuts and sugar.
- Pulse until you get a sand-like texture. Do not over-process, or you will end up with hazelnut butter!
- Using a medium-sized bowl, beat the egg whites to a stiff peak.
- Transfer the hazelnuts and sugar into a medium-sized saucepan and place over low heat.
- Take a third of the beaten egg whites and fold with the hazelnuts and sugar.
- Fold the rest of the egg whites and combine.
- Keep cooking over low heat until the batter thickens --- it usually takes about 30 minutes of constant mixing.
Baking brutti ma buoni cookies:
- Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F).
- Start forming your hazelnut and meringue cookies by taking about 1 & 1/2 of the cookie batter and placing it on top of a baking tray lined with a baking sheet.
- Keep some space between the cookies to allow for their expansion once in the oven.
- Place the cookies in the oven for about 30 minutes.
- Take the tray out of the oven and transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. You should be able to just pick them up, no need for a metal spatula to do this.
- Dust your hazelnut and meringue cookies with powdered sugar, if desired.
- Serve.
Video
Notes
- Cook's Tip #1: Do not over-process the hazelnuts and sugar. If you do, you will end up with hazelnut butter instead -- totally unusable for this recipe.
- Cook's Tip #2: It is better to use a nonstick saucepan when cooking the batter because it will stick to the pan's sides and bottom.
- Cook's Tip #3: Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to mix the batter.
- Cook's Tip #4: Keep the heat low when cooking the batter on the stovetop.
- Cook's Tip #5: When transferring the cookies into a cooling rack, make sure you handle them gently -- do not squeeze them either.
Nutrition
Calories: 83kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 9mg | Potassium: 61mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 34IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg