Italian chocolate baci di dama

Method
Prep:15min  ›  Cook:20min  ›  Extra time:4hr chilling  ›  Ready in:4hr35min 

1. Place flour, ground almonds, sugar, cocoa and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter and pulse for a few seconds to make a wet and crumbly mixture. Add vanilla and lemon zest and pulse again. Transfer onto a clean work surface, form into a ball, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.
2. Remove from the fridge, take a small amount, roll between palms to make a ball the size of a golf ball. Repeat with remaining dough. The process might take time, so work with half of dough first, keeping the remaining in the fridge. You should be able to make around 36 balls from this recipe.
3. Line baking trays with parchment; place the balls, 2cm apart form one another on the trays. Refrigerate for 2 hours or longer or put in the freezer for 45 minutes. It's very important that the dough is very cold or they will completely flatten down in the oven.
4. Preheat the oven to 170 C / Gas 3. Bake the biscuits in the bottom rack first for 10 minutes. Then transfer to the middle rack and bake 10 minutes longer. Remove from oven and cool biscuits in the tray on a rack.
5. Place the white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 15 seconds. Stir and microwave for 15 seconds longer; proceed the same way until fully melted.
6. Place half a teaspoon of white chocolate on the flat side of one of the biscuits. Sandwich with another biscuit and set aside on a plate. Repeat with remaining biscuits and white chocolate.

Tip:

These biscuits have a lot of butter and natural oils from the nuts. It's important to touch the dough as little as possible, plus keep it very cold before baking to get the correct shape.

Tip:

If the white chocolate goes hard while you are sandwiching the biscuits together, microwave for 15 seconds and it will melt again.