Chocolate Hazelnut Phyllo Rolls

I finally got my hands on phyllo dough! I always thought it was hard to get, but apparently it's been in the frozen section of my grocery store for a while... Hmmm, maybe I need laser eye surgery. Anywho, phyllo dough (or fillo, filo) is commonly found in Greek and Middle-Eastern cooking. These tissue-thin sheets of pastry dough can be used in both sweet (notably baklava) and savory dishes. But of course, I used them for a sweet dish, rationalizing that I already ate a savory tart made with phyllo in Greece.

To save time and money, I used a hazelnut-filled chocolate, instead of seperating the two ingredients. I was a little intimidated by the recipe. Somehow, making logs scare me, but it was quite easy making them. The phyllo dough may break a bit, but's that okay. It will definitely break to shreds once slicing and eating, so who cares? Rating: 3.5 out of 5.




Chocolate Hazelnut Phyllo Rolls: adapted from Martha Stewart, Living April 2004

Ingredients:
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely ground in a food processor
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
- 6 sheets phyllo dough (12 by 17 inches each), thawed if frozen
- 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

Ingredients:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat cream with cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat until it just begins to simmer. Stir into chocolate to melt. Finely chop 2 tablespoons nuts; set aside. Stir remaining nuts into chocolate. Spoon chocolate into a resealable plastic bag; cut 1 inch off one corner.
- Lay 1 sheet phyllo on a work surface (cover remaining sheets with a damp kitchen towel). Lightly brush surface with melted butter; lay another sheet on top, and brush with more melted butter.
- Immediately pipe chocolate along a short side of phyllo, 11/2 inches from edges.Tightly roll into a log, lightly brushing with butter at each turn and tucking in ends. Brush log with butter; cover with a damp kitchen towel. Repeat process to make 2 more logs.
- Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; bake 15 minutes. Rotate sheet; brush logs with butter. Sprinkle with reserved nuts. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes more. Let cool completely; dust with sugar. Cutting in a swift motion, divide each log into 8 pieces.