Nougatringe {Gianduia Chocolate & Shortbread Rings}

Instructions

To make the gianduia, pour the hazelnut butter into a food processor.
Add powdered sugar and process to combine.
The mixture will still be rather liquid and like a batter.
If your hazelnut butter is more solid, you can try to add one or two tablespoons of melted, refined coconut oil. (But I haven't tried this.)
Carefully melt the chocolate and the cocoa butter.
Pour over the hazelnut mixture and process until smooth.
Pour into a container and let cool in the fridge until solid.
Remove from fridge two to three hours before baking. 

To make the cookies, preheat oven to 180° (350°F).
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Beat together 120 g coconut oil, sugar, and starch.
Add flour, baking powder and salt.
Beat until the dough comes together. Doing this with my hands always works best.
If it doesn't come together, add the soy milk.
Roll the dough out between two sheets of plastic wrap or parchment paper, about 1/2 cm (1/4 inch) thick.
Use a cookie cutter or drinking glass to cut out disks. (I used a glass with a diameter of 8 1/2 cm or 3 1/4 inch.)
Use a second cookie cutter (3 cm or 1 1/4 inch) to cut a hole in the middle of each disk to form a ring.
Gather the remaining dough and repeat until you run out.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes or until golden brown.
Let cool completely.
For the filling, chop remaining 60 g of coconut oil and place in a bowl with the gianduia paste.
Use a handheld mixer to beat until smooth. The mixture will be very sensitive to warmth. If it starts to melt while beating, place it in the fridge for 10 minutes and then beat again.
Attach a large and wide tip to a pastry bag.
Fill with gianduia mixture.
Again, if it looks like it is melting, place it in the fridge.
Pipe the filling onto the cookies and place them in the fridge for 30 minutes.
For the chocolate glaze, melt the chocolate and cover the cookies in chocolate. I placed the cookies on a cookie rack and used a teaspoon to pour the chocolate over them.
Carefully transfer them to a piece of parchment paper and sprinkle with almonds. (This way you can get rid of excessive chocolate that will drip from the cookies. But you can also skip the cookie rack step and place them directly on the parchment paper.)
Let dry completely.
Store in the fridge but let come to room temperature before serving.