serves
10
prep
30 minutes
cook
30 minutes
difficulty
Easy
serves
10
people
preparation
30
minutes
cooking
30
minutes
difficulty
Easy
level
Ingredients
Dough
- 100 g margarine
- 100 g brown sugar
- 2 tbsp oat milk
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 100 g plain flour
- 100 g hazelnut meal
Spice mix
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground fennel
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Hazelnut paste
- 200 g de-skinned hazelnuts
- 150 g caster sugar
- 1 lemon, zested, plus 2 tsp (10 ml) of juice
To decorate
- 12 whole de-skinned hazelnuts (or more, as desired)
Instructions
- Cream margarine, brown sugar and oat milk. Add bicarbonate of soda, flour, hazelnut meal and ½ tsp salt. Mix with a paddle attachment for 2 minutes on moderate speed, or use a wooden spoon or spatula to combine. Add the spice mix and fold through until the spices are distributed through the dough.
- Place the dough onto baking paper and wrap it up, placing into the fridge (see Note) until the paste mixture has been made (at least 30 minutes – the colder the better).
- Preheat the oven to 180°C.
- Add all of the ingredients for the spice mix to a blender or spice grinder and blitz until it forms a paste, then transfer to a bowl.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out on a sheet of parchment paper to create a rectangle approximately 20 cm x 30 cm. Dust the rolling pin with a little flour if it is sticking.
- Once the dough has reached the desired size, place the hazelnut paste in the middle, running the length of the dough like a sausage, but leave 5 cm free at each end so you can fold all the dough around the paste without any gaps. Fold the top (long) edges over, followed by the side edges, encasing the hazelnut paste. Transfer to a lined baking tray, placing the log with the folded edges down. Press extra hazelnuts into the top of the log.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the dough is starting to colour. Allow to cool completely before cutting into pieces.
Note
Chilling will firm up the dough, making it easier to work with, and allow the flavours to meld.
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
