Cookie Swap Blog train!!

If you've come here through the "Cookie Swap Blog Train" from Amber's Blog then you know why you've landed here... ;)  If you're one of my regular readers or just found my blog, you can read about this Blog train here.

If you would like to go to the front of the train and have a look at all the "carriages" please go to Lois' blog - she's the conductor! ;) 

I'm a sucker for Christmas Cookies ... never leave enough time to bake them though, and I always end up with the same ones.  My granny (dad's mum) used to do the baking for the whole family, and she always had TONS of cookies ready to go onto our "Bunte Teller" (a Christmas plate with cookies, chocolates, satsumas, apples - just everything. It's a selection plate of every Christmas sweet snack really. ;)  ).  She used to store them on her "Loggia" (balcony) in one of those seats with storage space. They were always nice and cool when we got them. 

My absolute favourite cookies are the "Vanilla Crescent". And though I have tried for years now I never ever get the same result as granny.  ... Neither does my big sis, for that matter. ;) 

This year I decided to start the baking early ... in the past years I always just did a quick batch on Christmas Eve, but this year I will start baking the first week in December ... I have a couple more people this year I can offload cookies at if we got too many. ;) 

 So... here is a recipe for Vanilla Crescents (or "Vanillekipferl" in the original) - I have stashed my granny's recipe away somewhere safe and cannot find it again... :o My sis will check her books and send me an e-mail but that will be most likely tomorrow or later this week . So I might post my granny's recipe later together with a photo of my own results (instead of a web pic).  :) 

Vanilla Crescents without Egg (approx. 50)

                    

(photo source: ichkoche.at)


Ingredients:
250g Flour
200g Butter
100g Sugar
75g powdered Sugar
Pinch of Salt
2 packs of Bourbon-flavoured Vanilla Sugar
100g ground Almonds
2 Vanilla Beans 



Directions:
  1. Mix the flour, vanilla sugar, powdered sugar, salt, almonds and butter. Knead into a smooth dough. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
  2. Form dough into finger-sized rolls and cut into approx. 5cm long pieces. Form into crescents and lay out on 2 baking sheets lined with waxed/baking paper.
  3. In the meantime, slit open the vanilla beans lengthwise, scrape out the pulp and mix thoroughly with the sugar. Place in a shallow bowl.
  4. Immediately after baking, roll the crescents in the vanilla sugar.

If you enjoyed my recipe and like the photo, please go to the next carriage, where Cate is already waiting with her recipe. ;)

Comments

Deana Birks said…
Those look good! I tried making something similar years ago from a recipe that had no pictures and I see now that I was shaping them wrong (my crescents were flatter and fuller) and that must be why the baking time was way off. Now I'm going to try them again with this recipe!
Anonymous said…
I can't wait to try these. Almond is one of my favorite flavors... YUMMY!
Margie said…
Those look tasty!! I hope you find your grandma's recipe. What a treasure.
Margie said…
Fun fact: Just looked at your traffic feed and thought you'd like to know that I have software on my computer that makes it appear that I arrived from SF, Calif. but I really came from China. If I don't have the software, I can't access any blogs. They are blocked here along with Facebook, YouTube and other things I'm sure. Glad I could stop by!
Angela2932 said…
Bourbon flavored vanilla sugar!!!!! Now that sounds wonderful, all by itself! I love your expression "offload", because so much of the fun of Christmas baking is then sharing the treats with others. I may have to start a batch of these this week, and send them off with my husband to give to his students!
Anne said…
I love the shape of these. They would be eye catching and taste great.

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