Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread and Almond Plum Buckle

Hmmm. I don't know. These cookies were good, and very attractive, but I have a few issues with them. While not removing the hazelnut skins works fine for cakes, the skins gave these cookies a little bit of a bitter edge. If you're the kind of person who doesn't mind spending time rubbing hazelnuts together, then this recipe might be for you, but I'd rather bake with a lower maintenance nut. My second issue is that the chocolate never quite set up, probably because the coating was pure chocolate with nothing added. They were fine cold, but after they were out of the fridge for a little while the chocolate began to melt again. This problem could probably be remedied by adding something in with the chocolate, possibly butter? Now that doesn't sound like such a bad idea...

Fresh out of the oven and after refrigeration:














Of course, my third issue with these cookies is the eternal dilemma: which half is better, the chocolate or the plain?

And finally, I know that plum season is basically over (though has anyone worked with prune plums? Those sound intriguing...) but I want to say that the Epicurious recipe for Almond Plum Buckle is terrific. The cake is very dense, and it develops an almost crust-like texture around the edges. Very coffee-out-on-the-porch, very worth the effort, and very beautiful:

Almond Plum Buckle

Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread