Hazelnut Dacquoise

This recipe was given to me by the Pastry chef at the Rainbow Room Restaurant, found at the top of the Empire State building in NYC. The dessert was fabulous and asked for the recipe. I was shocked when I got a letter several weeks later in the mail with the recipe. I had forgotten about the recipe but since the September 11, 2001 events, I wanted to make sure fellow skiers still enjoy the freedoms of dessert from NYC like nobody else in the world.

Merinque Layers:
1 cup egg white
1 lb sugar
½ lb toasted hazel nuts ( you can spread in a cookie sheet and toast before you grind, it brings out their flavor), skinned and ground.

Filling:
20 oz buttercream
2 oz Amaretto
1 oz strong expresso coffee

Whip egg whites until foamy, gradually add sugar. Whip till stiff, fold in nuts.

Use pastry bag and tip. Pipe into 3 and ½ inch circles on a greased and floured baking sheet.

Bake 200 degrees until firm, dry and lightly browned ( about an hour). Cool.

Spread between the layers the filling. layering the circles like a big layer cake. Cut sides to make them all even around. Spread more filling around the sides, sieve crumbs from the trimming of the layers and dust the sides with crumbs. Leave top bare.