Polish Vanilla Crescents

This is my first day of Xmas cookie baking.  I'm slow again this year.  Baking 1500 cookies for the wedding a few months ago made me run out of cookie steam. I'm going to try different cookie recipes this year to jump start my cookie mojo.  I made these this morning.
 The ingredients:

  • 7 ounces softened butter
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 vanilla bean, scraped of its seeds  Use the best ones you can find.
  • 3 1/2 ounces ground (not chopped) almonds
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons milk, if necessary( I used it )
  • 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
 Instructions:

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream together 7 ounces softened butter and 1/2 cup sugar. Add scraped seeds from 1 vanilla bean and 3 1/2 ounces ground (not chopped) almonds, and mix again.
     
  2. In a separate small bowl, whisk together 2 cups all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. Add it to the butter-sugar mixture and thoroughly combine. If the dough is too dry and crumbly, add 1 to 2 tablespoons milk.
     
Next:
  1. On parchment-lined baking sheets, portion out small balls of dough. Roll into a pencil shape in the hands and then shape into small crescents. Bake 5 to 10 minutes or until bottoms are golden.
     
  2. Mix 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar. While cookies are still on the baking pan, sprinkle with sugar mixture. Let cool completely. Store in a tightly covered container.

 The dough needs a bit of milk.

 Before baking.

 Right out of the oven.  I doubled the recipe and got about 65 cookies.

 I find that these cookies always improve in taste after a few days.

So, let the baking begin!

Comments

Unknown said…
There ya go. Don't slow that train just yet...enjoy the moment of creating!
greekwitch said…
Ths recipe is very similar to the Greek Christmas cookie courabies. Ours is made of only flour, butter, almonds,confectioners sugar and rose water. I love both them and our other traditional Christmas cookie melomakarono which are a bit more complicated and full of honey!
Anonymous said…
These cookies reminds me of a kind that I've eaten but never baked. I wonder if they are the same. I love all cookies though so :-)

Have a great day!

Christer.
I like how Santa's trying to get in on the act there! Is he saying these are the cookies he wants left for him on Christmas Eve?
TARYTERRE said…
I used to make these or something similar a gazillion years ago. I can taste them. YUM. YUM.
Guillaume said…
Looks like some fancy doughnuts.