NUTELLA BISCUIT SANDWICHES

I love to bake although it unfortunately means I gain about 7lbs in a week as I cannot stop myself eating my cakes, biscuits, brownies etc. The last time I baked a cake I ended up eating it for breakfast, lunch and supper til it was finished - hence I have not baked one for a year!!

Like pretty much every child, Arabella loves to bake and I think it is a really nice thing to do with your kids although it takes a lot of patience as the mess factor can be out of control (especially for me - an uptight Virgo)!

We are going to visit a pregnant friend for lunch today and as I can't take the usual gift of wine, I decided to use the opportunity to bake some biscuits with my daughter. These are once again from one of the best cook books ever - Fay Ripley's What's For Dinner (although I haven't followed the recipe exactly) and are absolutely divine and extremely simple to make.

Ingredients for about 10 biscuits (although this depends on size, obviously the smaller the biscuit, the more you will make):

100g toasted chopped almonds
100g ground hazelnuts
150g plain flour
60g caster sugar
150g butter, softened
1/2 a 400g jar of Nutella

As always start by preheating the oven to 200C / 180C fan / gas mark 6 and then line two baking trays with baking paper.

Mix the almonds, hazelnuts, flour, sugar and butter together in a food processor and whizz until it all comes together. I always melt the butter a little first so it mixes more easily. Arabella starts her "tasting process" here!

Roll little teaspoon sized amounts of the mixture in your hands to make balls of dough the size of large marbles (mine are very large marbles) and then flatten. I generally make the balls and Arabella flattens them - it helps to have slightly damp hands. Put them on a baking tray and bake for about 15-20 minutes (I did 17 today)!

After you take them out, let them cool and then spoon a big dollop of Nutella on one and cover with another - a Nutella biscuit sandwich! (Arabella is a HUGE help here licking the Nutella spoon)!

Finally put them in the fridge until you want to eat them...and once you start you won't stop (like Pringles)!! I will be taking them all to Vicky's shortly as I need to get them out the house asap (I have already eaten one) and can feel those pounds creeping on - it is worth it though, they are incredible!!