Mocha Hazelnut Cookies

I discovered and fell in love with these cookies within the last couple years.  Nutty and chocolaty with a hint of coffee flavor- mmmm.  It's like putting awesome coffee house smells into a cookie!  If you have a hard time finding hazelnuts and hazelnut syrup, I found mine at Whole Foods.  I've also found hazelnuts cheaper online, and they're just as fresh as the whole ones I found in the store.  Bonus- they were already roasted when bought online!

Ingredients

• 1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix
• 1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 3 tablespoons instant coffee granules or crystals
• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
• 3 tablespoons hazelnut-flavored syrup for beverages
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups toasted hazelnuts, chopped (I pulse mine just a few times in the food processor) and divided
• 1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
• 2/3 cups Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy chocolate frosting
• 4 1/2 teaspoons hazelnut-flavored syrup for beverages

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  In a large bowl or mixer stir together cookie mix, cocoa, and instant coffee.  Ad butter, 3 tablespoons of syrup, and the egg.  Stir until a soft dough forms.  Mix in 1 cup of the nuts and the chocolate chips.
2. On an ungreased cookie sheet, drop rounded tablespoons of dough about 2 inches apart.  Press each mound with the bottom of a measuring cup to flatten softly, then pick up dough so it isn't stuck to cookie sheet.
3. Bake 8-10 minutes, rotating halfway through, until set.  Cool 3 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool completely (about 15 minutes).
4. In a small bowl, stir frosting and 4 1/2 teaspoons syrup.  Spread about 1 teaspoon of frosting on each cookie.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of nuts.