- 40
- 20 mins
- 40 mins
Ingredients
- 200 200g 200g butter, softened
- 125 125g 125g (1 cup) icing sugar, sifted
- 1 1 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
- 1 1 1 egg
- 1 1 1 egg yolk
- 1 1 1 tablespoon brandy
- 375 375g 1/2 (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
- 1 1/2 1 1/2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 155 155g 155g (1 cup) toasted alomonds, finely chopped (I used coarse almond meal)
- to 160C 2 160C (315F). Line 2 large baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
- to an electric mixer to beat the butter, sugar and orange zest in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Add egg, egg yolk, brandy and cinnamon. Beat until well combined.
- 5cm to flour and baking powder. Using a wooden spoon, mix well. Shape tablespoons of mixture into crescents and place on trays leaving 5cm gaps between them to allow for spreading.
Preparation
Step 1
The little biscuits are very similar to Vanillekipferl, the darling of Europe’s Christmas time baking. The famous Greek version known as Kourabiedes is different in the addition of egg, citrus and spice. With an nut base (usually almond), Kourabiedes have many variations with spices used ranging from cloves to cinnamon. Although I love vanillekipferl, these delicate aromatic crescents transcend me to another level.
They are easy to bake and once you get the hang of shaping them into crescents which can be a tad tricky in the beginning, you will have a biscuit jar full of about 40 of these little delights. Two little crescents in a ziplock bag stashed away in my bag make feel like the girl scout I never was. Prepared!
Greek Almond Crescents are sweet little crescent shaped biscuits infused with orange zest and cinnamon that make a delightful tea time indulgence.
Makes –
Preheat oven to 160C (315F). Line 2 large baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
Use an electric mixer to beat the butter, sugar and orange zest in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Add egg, egg yolk, brandy and cinnamon. Beat until well combined.
Add sifted flour and baking powder. Using a wooden spoon, mix well. Shape tablespoons of mixture into crescents and place on trays leaving 5cm gaps between them to allow for spreading.
Bake in the pre-heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden, swapping trays back to front after about 10 minutes to enable even cooking. Remove from oven at the end of the cooking time. Cool on trays for 5 minutes before gently transferring them to a wire rack. While still warm, dust heavily with icing sugar. When cooled completely, store in an air tight container. Will keep well for a week or longer in the fridge.
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HAHA I’m with John. I’d scoff them all down too and accidentally inhale on the icing sugar! A little nontraditional but I also add chopped roasted almond silvers and roll them into balls, bite-size ftw
What a great job you did! Kourabiedes are baked in every Greek home during the Christmas holidays but we never make them any other time of the year. Now you make me wonder why not! They look stunning.
I’m dying to use your recipe and make these myself!
Oh, fantastic! We make a very similar version in the Middle East (really popular in N Africa) called Gazelle’s Horns. Yours look super – love the gentle curve you’ve created.
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