Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Pie Bars

Like Nutella or chocolate and hazelnuts together???  If your answer was YES, then you’ll love these cookies!  These Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Pie Bars are a cross between chocolate hazelnut pie, chocolate hazelnut cookies, and chocolate hazelnut truffles.  The recipe combines all the goodness of each for a cookie that is  full of ooey-gooey dark chocolate and crunchy hazelnuts!  I think it’s the best cookie recipe I’ve come up with!  Or maybe until the next recipe.   They’ve gotten rave reviews!  You can cut them into small little bite-size cookie bars or for a more formal dessert cut them into larger pieces and top with whipped cream.

I came up with this dark chocolate and hazelnut recipe this fall after I signed myself up for the The Great 2012 Food Blogger Cookie Swap.  Food Bloggers from all over participated to help raise money for charity and also exchange cookies.  So I packaged up 3 tins full of cookies for my 3 assigned bloggers: Stracciatella, A Brown Table, and Love U Madly and sent them on their way.

 Then my packages started coming in!  Always great to get packages in the mail full of cookies!  This is what I received:

• Raspberry Pillow Cookies (from Koko Cooks)
• M&M Chocolate Cookies  (from A Zesty Bite)
• Coconut Macaroons (from Koko Likes)

They were all delicious and what a great way to discover other fabulous food blogs!

So who is ready to make these Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Pie Bars???  This is a very easy recipe!  To start, preheat your oven then get your pan ready.  I sprayed my pan with a nonstick spray (I love PAM Baking nonstick spray), then lined with parchment paper (not necessary but makes it a lot easier to take the bars out), then sprayed again lightly with the nonstick spray.

Prepare the chocolate crust for the cookies.  Be sure to press the crust down.  I used a fork to help make the crust even and flat.

Bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until very lightly browned around edges and slightly puffy.  Mix your filling and pour over the crust.  Put it all back in the oven and bake until browned on top.

When it’s fully baked, the top with be lightly browned and a bit crispy.  Cool completely.  I like to then put my cookies in the fridge to set a little quicker.

Cut the Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Pie Bars into any size you’d like.  I like to cut the edges off but it’s not necessary.  I like to cut the cookies into small bars, but you can cut them into large bars or any size/shape you’d like.

Even though there’s no Nutella in these cookies they have the same great chocolate and hazelnut combination!   You can also substitute other varieties of chocolate and nuts too for a completely different flavor of cookies.

The top of these Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Pie Bars is kind of crackly over a soft gooey center!  I think I’ll be making these more often!!  They freeze really well too so they’re a great make ahead dessert!

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Looking for more cookie recipes?  Check out my recent post about Food Bloggers and their favorite cookie recipes including a long list of cookies!