A quick Baking Around the World disclaimer before we get into the recipe:

While I have done/will do extensive research for each of the recipes in this series, the recipes are unlikely to be 100% authentic because of differences in ingredient availability, variations within families/regions and multiple other reasons. I'm so sorry if I absolutely butcher your favourite childhood treat (and please let me know in the comments if I have made any unforgiveable errors), but please do give me the benefit of the doubt here- I am just a baker with a serious sweet tooth, trying to broaden her baking (and cultural) horizons through tasty snacks :)

Table of Contents

• Gâteau Creusois: Explained
• Ingredients
• DIY Ground Hazelnuts
• Making Gâteau Creusois
• Final Thoughts
• Recipe
• Sources Used

Gâteau Creusois: Explained

I only came across Gâteau Creusois pretty recently, when my aunt brought a commercial version over from France for us to try. My brother enjoyed it so much that he actually requested a homemade version for his birthday cake this year, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for another Baking Around the World project!

Gâteau Creusois is a meringue-based, hazelnut cake that originated in Creuse, a department in central France. The recipe was discovered in 1969, within the ruins of a local monastery, written on a piece of parchment that dated back to the 15th century. Apparently, the monks used to cook the cake in ceramic tiles known as ‘creuses’ (meaning hollow, or concave), which is likely where the name Gâteau Creusois originated (though it could also come from the name of the department, ‘Creuse’, instead). It is said that the original recipe is a closely guarded secret amongst a select group of pastry chefs, so the modern recipes in circulation are unlikely to be exact replicas of the recipe written on that initial manuscript.

Most Gâteaux Creusois in France tend to be commercial, industrially produced ones (like the one my aunt bought us), with homemade versions being much less commonplace (perhaps because of the aforementioned secretive pastry chefs!). Luckily, there are still multiple recipes online available, so all hope is not lost! You can still make a deliciously rich, soft and tender, hazelnutty Gâteau Creusois at home (which is exactly what I did).

Ingredients

Gâteau Creusois is actually a really simple cake to make— you only need 5 ingredients (or 6, if you want to dust the finished cake with icing sugar, like I did):

• Hazelnuts

You’ll need ground hazelnuts for this recipe. I like to grind them myself— you can find instructions for this below.

• Caster Sugar

Some recipes use icing sugar, but the majority use regular, caster sugar, so that’s what I’ve used here.

• Plain Flour

There’s no raising agent in this cake— the whipped egg whites do all the work, which is what gives it such a rich, almost fudgy texture. Make sure to use plain flour, because self-raising flour contains baking powder.

• Butter

You can use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe— whichever you have on hand. I’ve tried both and both cakes were delicious. Whichever butter you choose to use, it needs to be melted and cooled before you add it to the mixture.

• Egg Whites

The egg whites are whipped separately before being folded into the batter, which helps give the cake lift. You don’t need the yolks for this recipe, so set them aside for another recipe (perhaps an ice cream? You can find my ice cream recipes here!).

DIY Ground Hazelnuts

Whole hazelnuts are usually easier to find in supermarkets than ready-ground hazelnuts, but, luckily, it’s super easy to grind them at home (and it’s much easy to toast the whole nuts than the ground version, so you can get plenty of extra flavour into your Gâteau Creusois!).

You can buy hazelnuts with or without their papery skins (without the skins, they’re often sold as ‘blanched hazelnuts’). Either one is fine, but, if you’re using unblanched hazelnuts (like in the above photo), it’s best to remove the skins for this recipe (which is also very easy— more on that in a sec!).

Start by toasting the nuts. I do this in the airfryer (5 minutes at 180°C), but you can do it in the oven (for the same length of time/at the same temperature), or even in a dry pan over high heat on the hob (though this method doesn’t get the nuts quite as evenly roasty throughout). Once the nuts are toasted, tip them out onto a clean tea towel, ready for the next step.

Don’t skip this toasting step— not only does it significantly improve the hazelnut flavour, it’s also much easier to get the shells off the nuts when they are warm.

To get the skins off the nuts, wrap the clean tea towel around them and rub the whole bundle together between your hands. The friction will cause the skins to rub off the surfaces of the warm nuts and you’ll be left with a pile of the papery skins (like in the above photo), which you can discard or compost.

Don’t worry too much if you can’t get all of the skin off the nuts— it will just add a little extra colour and texture to your cake! Just try to remove as much as you can, because the skins can sometimes be a bit tough.

It’s important to let the nuts cool completely before proceeding to the grinding stage. Nuts release their oils more easily when they are warm, so you run a greater risk of ending up with nut butter, instead of ground nuts, if you try to grind them when they are still hot!

Tip the cooled nuts into a food processor and blitz until they are finely ground (I used a mini food processor for this, so the nuts are more finely ground than they appear in the above photo!). Try to get them quite fine, but don’t worry too much if there are a few slightly larger pieces— again, this will just add texture to the finished cake. Don’t over-blitz them, or you’ll end up with hazelnut butter, even if the nuts were cold when you started!

Making Gâteau Creusois

Now you have your toasted, skinned and grounded hazelnuts, you can get on with making the cake itself! Making a Gâteau Creusois is actually fairly straightforward (it’s nowhere near as finicky as you might expect from the home of pâtisserie!).

Start by preparing the tin. Grease and line an 8-inch, round tin with butter and baking paper and set aside. You’ll also need to preheat the oven to 170°C.

Place the ground hazelnuts, caster sugar and plain flour in a large bowl.

Mix these ingredients together until the hazelnuts are evenly distributed throughout the mixture.

Add the cooled, melted butter to the dry ingredients and mix in. You should end up with a nutty, paste-like mixture.

In a separate, metal bowl (I used a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, for this part), whisk the egg whites until they have just reached stiff peaks. They should hold their shape, but not be too dry, as this can cause the cake to rise too much and be dry and cakey, rather than dense and rich.

Add a large spoonful of the whipped egg whites to the nut mixture, and stir in vigorously to loosen the mixture.

Add the remaining egg whites and use a large, metal spoon to fold them into the mixture. It’s best to use a metal spoon for this because it can ‘slice’ through the batter more effectively, so that you don’t knock too much air out of the whites as you incorporate them.

Once the egg whites have been completely incorporated and no streaks remain, you should be left with a thick, soft batter, just like in the above photo.

Pour this batter into the tin you prepared earlier.

Then use a knife to level out the surface, so that it bakes evenly.

Place the cake into the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the surface is golden and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

The cake will deflate quite rapidly once it is removed from the oven, but don’t worry— that’s what gives it its fudgy, moreish texture.

Allow the cake to cool for 5-10 minutes in the tin before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Don’t leave the cake for any longer in the tin, because it will start to firm up and stick to the tin as it cools, making it harder to remove neatly (obviously, I speak from experience).

Once the cake is completely cool, you can dust it with a layer of icing sugar. I’m not sure if this is strictly traditional, but it does make it extra pretty (and delicious)!

Serve wedges of the cake as they are, with vanilla custard (apparently a traditional accompaniment), or with whipped cream and berries (not so traditional, but very delicious!). The cake is quite rich, so you won’t need a huge slice!

Final Thoughts

This is a really unassuming cake— it looks like a plain, simple cake layer, but it’s actually a rich, decadent and delicious nutty treat: more like a nutty torte than a cake! It’s also incredibly simple, quick and easy to make, so I think it would make the perfect dessert for a relaxed dinner party or subtly impressive addition to afternoon tea.

The surface of the cake can look a little odd after it has cooled— it’s covered with little holes, almost as if it has been pricked all over with a skewer, which is partly why I decided to dust the whole thing with icing sugar (which is known for covering a multitude of sins). I’m not sure if this is just a defining feature of the cake, or a result of a mistake I’ve made somewhere along the way, but I’m not too bothered— it’s still incredibly delicious!

While it would be easier to buy ground hazelnuts to use for this recipe, I do think that toasting and grind the nuts yourself adds a real hit of extra hazelnut flavour, so I would definitely recommend doing that if you have the time!

Recipe

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Gâteau Creusois

A meringue-based, hazelnut cake from France, this is a super quick and easy, yet surprisingly rich and decadent, bake that makes for a delicious dessert or treat any time of year.

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine French

Keyword Cake, Hazelnut, Meringue

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 12

Equipment

• 1 8-inch round cake tin

Ingredients

• 120 g hazelnuts, toasted and finely ground (see Note 1).
• 150 g caster sugar
• 80 g plain flour
• 125 g butter, melted and cooled (see Note 2).
• 4 egg whites
• Icing sugar, for dusting (optional).

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 170°C. Grease and line an 8-inch round tin with baking paper and set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix together the ground hazelnuts, caster sugar and plain flour, until well combined.
• Add the cooled, melted butter to the dry ingredients and mix until you have a nutty, paste-like mixture.
• In a large, metal bowl (I used a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment), whip the egg whites until they have just reached stiff peaks. The whites should hold their shape, but not look too dry.
• Add a large spoonful of the whipped egg whites to the nut mixture and mix in vigorously to loosen the mixture.
• Add the remaining egg whites and fold in, using a large metal spoon, until no streaks remain and you have a thick, even batter.
• Pour the batter into the prepared tin and level out the surface. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the surface is golden and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
• Allow the cake to cool for 5-10 minutes only before removing from the tin and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Once cool, dust liberally with icing sugar (if desired) and serve. You can serve the cake plain, or with an accompaniment: vanilla custard is traditional, but a spoonful of whipped cream and some fresh berries is also delicious. The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about 4 days.

Notes

1. To toast/grind the hazelnuts:

Toast the nuts in an oven/airfryer set to 180°C for about 5 minutes, until very golden and smelling super nutty (you can also toast the nuts in a dry pan on the hob, though you won’t get quite as intense a flavour with this method). 

Allow the nuts to cool completely before transferring to a food processor to grind them. Aim for quite a fine grind, but don’t worry if there are some stubborn, larger pieces— they’ll just add texture! Be careful not to over-grind the nuts, or you might end up with hazelnut butter instead.

2. You can use unsalted or salted butter for this recipe— whichever you have on hand.

 

 

Sources Used

Cooking Melangery: French Hazelnut Meringue Cake

Del’s Cooking Twist: French Hazelnut Cake (Creusois)

French Touch: Creusois Cake

SBS Food: Gateaux Creusois (cake from Creuse)

Taste Atlas: Gâteau Creusois

Tourisme Creuse: Gourmet and Local Products

750g: Gäteau Creusois

Table of Contents

• The Question…? Cupcake: Explained
• Roasting the Hazelnuts
• Making the Chocolate & Hazelnut Cupcakes
• Making the Hazelnut Praline
• Preparing the Ferrero Rocher Chocolates
• Making the Chocolate & Hazelnut Whipped Cream Icing
• Decorating the Cupcakes
• Recipe

The Question…? Cupcake: Explained

The Question…? Cupcake is comprised of 4 main elements:

• Chocolate & hazelnut cake
• Amaretto, chocolate & hazelnut whipped cream icing
• Hazelnut praline
• Gold Ferrero Rocher ‘meteor’

There’s not a huge amount of food-related inspiration to draw on in this particular song, so I had to use a little bit of artistic license when creating this cupcake. I’ve mainly drawn on two specific lines from the lyrics:

‘It was one drink after another‘

and

‘Does it feel like everything’s just like second-best after that meteor strike?‘.

I was brainstorming ways to decorate the cupcake to reflect the concept of a meteor strike and I kept coming back to Ferrero Rocher chocolates. If you’ve never seen these before, they’re these (expensive- WHY SO EXPENSIVE?!) chocolate & hazelnut truffles, that come individually wrapped in gold foil. Once unwrapped, they have a pretty distinctive, knobbly (for lack of a better word) appearance, which comes from the chopped hazelnuts that the truffles are covered in, before their final dunking in chocolate. They’ve always reminded me a little of space rocks, so I figured they’d make a great ‘meteor’ for this cupcake.

I decided to run with the flavours of the Ferrero Rocher (i.e. chocolate and hazelnut) and use that combination as the basis for these cupcakes. I also added some alcohol, even though I’m usually not a huge fan of alcohol in bakes (but it actually really works here- amaretto is one of the few spirits I actually like, so it all works out!), to reflect the reference to alcohol in the song.

Essentially then, the cupcakes are standard chocolate cupcakes, studded with tiny pieces of freshly roasted hazelnuts. The whipped cream icing is combined with warmed chocolate hazelnut spread and Amaretto liqueur (a combination I first came across in this Yule Log recipe, by Edd Kimber, of Great British Bake Off fame, and which I have been obssessed with ever since). The Ferrero Rocher chocolates are painted gold using edible lustre dust (because, of course), then shards of homemade hazelnut praline are also adorned with gold and arranged to look like the fiery path of the meteor as it falls.

Roasting the Hazelnuts

To get the maximum amount of flavour out of the hazelnuts, which we’ll be using in both the cupcakes and the praline, you need to roast (or toast) them. There are a few different ways you can do this:

• On the hob:

This is the fastest method, but the nuts won’t be quite as evenly roasted all the way through- so the flavour won’t be quite as deep. Place the nuts into a dry pan over medium-high heat and shake every now and then until golden and smelling super nutty. Tip them out onto a clean plate and allow them to cool completely before chopping/grinding as needed.

• In the oven:

This takes a little longer, but produces perfectly, evenly roasted nuts with an intensely nutty flavour. Spread the nuts onto a baking tray, in an even layer and place into a 180°C oven (conventional oven). Allow to roast for 6-8 minutes, until evenly golden. Again, allow to cool completely before chopping/grinding as needed.

• In an airfryer:

This one’s a bit rogue, but airfryers are actually amazing at roasting nuts- you get the same effect as roasting them in the oven, but it’s faster, because you don’t need to wait for the airfryer to come to temperature beforehand. Simply tip the nuts into the airfryer, then fry (airfry? bake? I don’t know…) for 6-8 minutes at 180°C, until evenly golden and smelling delicious. As with the other two methods, allow the nuts to cool completely before chopping/grinding as needed.

In total, for this recipe, you’ll need 100g of roasted hazelnuts (50g for the cupcakes, 50g for the praline). I like to roast all the hazelnuts at the start of the process, so they have plenty of time to cool before I need them.

Making the Chocolate & Hazelnut Cupcakes

To make the cupcakes, start by finely grinding half of the roasted hazelnuts in a food processor. Aim for a texture similar to that of the ground almonds that you would buy in the supermarket (like in the above photo), but be careful not to overdo it- if you grind the hazelnuts for too long, they will release their oils and you’ll end up with hazelnut butter- fun and delicious, but not what we want here. Don’t worry if you have a few slightly bigger pieces of hazelnut- it will just add a bit more texture!

I used my favourite All-In-One Method to make the chocolate cake batter. This method is great because it’s so quick and easy- perfect for if you’re in a hurry, are feeling low on energy or just want to focus on the other elements of your cake. You can read more about this method in this post– which includes a detailed step-by-step walkthrough of how to make the perfect cake batter using this technique.

Essentially, all you need to do is put all of the cake batter ingredients (bar the ground hazelnuts) into the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix everything together on medium-low speed until the dry ingredients are incorporated, then turn the speed up to full power and whisk until you have a smooth, fluffy batter.

Once the cake batter is ready, you can fold in the hazelnuts.

Adding the hazelnuts with the initial ingredients can interfere with how the batter whips up, so it’s best to wait until the end and fold them in by hand.

Once the batter is ready, it’s time to fill the cupcake cases. Divide the batter equally between the 12 cases (I like to use a regular-sized ice cream scoop to ensure all of the cupcakes are the same size), then bake the cupcakes at 170°C (conventional oven) for 25-30 minutes, or until the cupcakes spring back when touched gently.

As soon as the cupcakes come out of the oven, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating. Removing them from the tray immediately after they come out of the oven will prevent the bottoms of the cases from becoming oily- just be careful not to burn your fingers!

Making the Hazelnut Praline

To make the praline, start by roughly chopping the remaining half of the roasted hazelnuts.

Spread the chopped hazelnuts onto a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, and set aside somewhere near the stove, ready for later.

Place the sugar into a saucepan and place over medium-low heat. Without stirring, allow the sugar to melt over the heat and begin to turn a deep caramel colour.

Once the sugar has completely melted and the caramel is a deep golden colour, take it off the heat. The caramel will be super hot at this stage, so be very careful!

Immediately pour the hot caramel over the nuts, aiming to cover as many of the nuts as possible.

Allow the praline to sit at room temperature until completely cool. It will harden as it cools, so, once cold, you’ll be able to snap it into little shards, ready to decorate the cupcakes with. Don’t be tempted to put the praline into the fridge to speed up the process- sugar gets super sticky if you leave it into a cold, humid environment like the fridge! If you want to make the praline ahead of time, place the cooled shards into an airtight container and leave at room temperature until you’re ready to use them.

Preparing the Ferrero Rocher Chocolates

While the cupcakes are cooling and the praline is setting, you can prepare the Ferrero Rocher chocolates, by painting them with gold lustre dust. This is optional, but it adds a bit of pizzazz to the cupcakes and helps to give the chocolates more of a ‘meteor’ look.

Unwrap the chocolates and set them on a baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper.

In a small bowl or cup, mix some gold lustre dust with a splash of vanilla extract, until you have a similar consistency to a watercolour paint. Don’t bother using a really good quality vanilla extract here- we’re not using it for taste at this point, so a cheap one will work just as well.

Using a clean, food-safe paintbrush, paint each chocolate all over with the gold ‘paint’. Leave them to set at room temperature while you prepare the icing.

If, like me, you’re feeling a bit extra and have some lustre dust ‘paint’ leftover, you can also add little streaks of gold to the praline shards, to tie everything together. Just paint directly onto the cooled shards and set them aside with the chocolates to set before assembling the cakes.

Making the Chocolate & Hazelnut Whipped Cream Icing

This whipped cream icing is SO easy to make, but incredibly delicious. As I mentioned, this is an adapted version of the icing used in Edd Kimber’s Chocolate Hazelnut Bûche De Noël recipe, which I actually made last year and LOVED, so it seemed like the perfect icing to use here. It does include a little bit of alcohol (specifically, amaretto), but, if you would prefer to make these alcohol-free, just leave it out! The icing will still taste delicious without it.

To make the icing, place the cream, sugar and vanilla bean paste into a large bowl and whisk to soft peaks.

Add the amaretto (if using) and continue whisking until the cream reaches medium peaks.

Gently warm the chocolate hazelnut spread to loosen it- this will help you incorporate it into the cream. I do this in the microwave, on the lowest temperature setting, in 15 second increments, until the spread is nice and fluid, but not hot. If the spread is too hot, it will melt the cream- not the vibe!

Fold the warmed hazelnut spread into the cream.

Once everything is completely incorporated and you have a smooth, pale brown icing, transfer it to a piping bag, fitted with a large, open star tip, ready to pipe onto the cupcakes.

Decorating the Cupcakes

To assemble the cupcakes, start by piping on the whipped cream icing. I went for this double-height swirl, which looks impressive but is super easy to create.

Just start in the middle of the cupcake, applying gentle pressure, then work your way out to the edge and continue all around the edge of the cake. Without releasing the pressure, continue up on top of the layer of icing you just piped, in a spiral. Work around the outer edge, then come inwards, finishing up in the centre by gently releasing your pressure on the bag.

To finish off the cakes, add a gold Ferrero Rocher ‘meteor’ to the top of each cupcake, placing it slightly off centre to leave room for the praline.

Nestle a couple of praline shards in next to each chocolate to mimic the fiery meteor trail and you’re done! ‘Question…?’ Cupcakes, ready to be enjoyed.

The cupcakes are best served immediately, because of the cream icing and the sugary praline. However, they will keep in the fridge for a couple of days if needed. If you plan to store them in the fridge, I would recommend leaving the praline off and adding the shards just before you serve the cakes, so that the sugar doesn’t become sticky.

Recipe

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‘Question…?’ Cupcakes

Inspired by Taylor Swift's song 'Question…?', these chocolate & hazelnut cupcakes are topped with a boozy chocolate whipped cream icing and decorated with a gold Ferrero Rocher and homemade hazelnut praline 'meteor'.

Course Dessert, Snack

Keyword Amaretto, Chocolate, Ferrero Rocher, Hazelnut, Praline, Whipped cream

Prep Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 12 cupcakes

Equipment

• 1 piping bag
• 1 large open star piping tip

Ingredients

For the chocolate & hazelnut cupcakes:

• 50 g blanched hazelnuts, roasted, cooled and finely ground (see Note 1).
• 150 g Stork (see Note 2).
• 150 g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 100 g self-raising flour
• 40 g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch fine sea salt
• 1 tbsp brewed coffee, cooled (see Note 3).
• 1 splash vanilla extract

For the hazelnut praline:

• 50 g blanched hazelnuts, roasted and roughly chopped (see Note 1).
• 150 g caster sugar.

For the chocolate & hazelnut whipped cream icing:

• 200 g chocolate hazelnut spread
• 600 ml double cream
• 50 g light brown soft sugar
• 1/8 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 1-2 tbsp amaretto liqueur, to taste (optional).

To decorate:

• 12 Ferrero Rocher chocolates, unwrapped.
• Gold lustre dust
• Vanilla extract (see Note 4).

Instructions

Make the chocolate & hazelnut cupcakes:

• Preheat the oven to 170°C (conventional oven). Line a 12-hole cupcake tray with brown cupcake cases and set aside.
• Place all of the ingredients, bar the ground hazelnuts, into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium-low speed until the dry ingredients are mostly incorporated, then turn the speed up to full power and whisk until you have a smooth, light and fluffy batter- about 1 minute.
• Fold the ground hazelnuts into the batter by hand, then divide the batter evenly between the 12 cupcake cases.
• Bake the cupcakes in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the cakes spring back when touched gently. As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.

Make the hazelnut praline:

• Spread the chopped hazelnuts into a single, even layer on a baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper.
• Place the sugar into a saucepan and set over medium-low heat. Leave over the heat, without stirring, until the sugar has completely melted and has turned a deep caramel colour.
• Remove the caramel from the heat and immediately pour over the chopped hazelnuts. Set aside at room temperature until hardened and completely cool.
• Break the praline into small shards and set aside at room temperature until ready to decorate the cakes.

Prepare the Ferrero Rocher chocolates:

• Unwrap 12 Ferrero Rocher chocolates and place them on a baking tray, line with greaseproof paper.
• Mix a small amount of gold lustre dust with enough vanilla extract to give a watercolour-like consistency. Use a clean, food-safe paintbrush to brush the gold 'paint' all over the surface of each chocolate, then set aside on the tray to set.
• If desired, paint a small amount of gold onto the praline shards as well, and allow them to set alongside the chocolates.

Make the chocolate & hazelnut whipped cream icing:

• Place the cream, brown sugar and vanilla bean paste into a large bowl and whisk to soft peaks. Add the amaretto (if using) and whisk again, until the mixture reaches medium peaks.
• Gently warm the chocolate hazelnut spread (I do this in the microwave, on the lowest temperature setting, in 15 second bursts) until fluid, but not hot. Fold the warmed spread into the whipped cream mixture.
• Once you have a smooth, evenly chocolate-y cream, transfer the icing to a piping bag, fitted with a large, open star tip, ready for piping onto the cupcakes.

Assemble the cupcakes:

• Pipe a double-height swirl of icing onto each cupcake. Top each cake with a gold Ferrero Rocher 'meteor', placed slightly off centre, along with a couple of shards of praline, to mimic a fiery meteor trail.
• Serve the cakes immediately. If necessary, the cakes will keep in the fridge for a couple of days, but I would recommend leaving the praline off and adding it just before serving, as the sugar will become sticky in the fridge.

Notes

1. You can either roast the hazelnuts in an oven or an air fryer (both at 180°C, for 6-8 minutes). If you’re short on time, you can also toast the nuts in a dry pan on the hob, over medium-high heat (although this won’t yield the same depth of flavour as the roasting methods). Roast all the nuts needed for the recipe before you start baking, then allow them to cool before grinding/chopping as needed. To grind the nuts, transfer the cooled nuts to a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Be careful not to overdo it though, or the nuts will release their oils and you’ll end up with hazelnut butter!
2. As always, I like to use Stork in place of butter when I make cakes, because I think it gives them a fluffier, moister crumb. If you would prefer to use butter, you can use an equal amount of softened, unsalted butter in place of the Stork.
3. You can either use coffee straight from a coffee machine, or you can make it using instant coffee granules: place 1/8 tsp instant coffee granules into a small bowl, then add 1 tbsp of boiling water and stir to dissolve. 
4. This doesn’t need to be a good quality vanilla extract- it is just mixed with the lustre dust to create a ‘paint’ that can be brushed onto the chocolates/praline shards.