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Vanille Kipferl I

Read Reviews (12)

"This recipe is known in America as almond crescents. I converted the measurements and translated this recipe that has been in my family for generations. It's a German Christmas cookie." — Christiane

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Original recipe makes 3 dozen Change Servings

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar
3/4 cup ground almonds

1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 whole vanilla bean

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Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (170 degrees C).
Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry blender, then quickly knead into a dough.
Shape dough into logs and cut off 1/2 inch pieces. Shape each piece into a crescent and place on a non-stick paper lined cookie sheet.
Bake approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Cool 1 minute and carefully roll in vanilla sugar. (To make vanilla sugar, blend 1/2 vanilla bean with 1 cup of sugar, sieve). Tip: vanilla sugar comes out like powered sugar, to make it stick to the cookie better, I mix it with regular sugar.

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I have finally found the perfect almond crescent recipe! My grandmother used to make these and up until now, I could never find a recipe that tasted like hers. Let's just say that if you like the butter cookies that you buy in the tins, you will absolutely LOVE these! I did make one slight adjustment. I didn't have any vanilla beans for the sugar so just used powdered sugar. Then, I added 1/4tsp vanilla and 1/4tsp almond extract to the cookie dough.

—DIZ♥

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Sep 09, 2007

This is very popular Christmas cookie in Germany. You need to add a pinch of salt, and eggs depending on how many cookies you make.

—Cookingforfun

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15 Ratings

Nov 11, 2005

Bake at 375 degrees and they come out perfectly. Mixing the vanilla sugar with regular sugar does make it stick better. Great cookie that melts in your mouth.

—Joe

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Dec 15, 2007

This is the same basic recipe that my Oma made all her life except that she used walnuts. I've been making these for many years and just let my Kitchen Aid do the work. The eight to ten minute baking time is off tho. At 325 the cookies should bake for fifteen to twenty minutes. Because they're such a delicate cookie, I let them cool completely before I start to dip them into the sugar. I use regular granulated sugar as powdered tends to yellow and disappear into the cookie. Thanks Christiane for passing on this wonderful recipe.

—LINDA MCLEAN

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Jan 13, 2010

Absolutly loved this recipe I used this one in conjunction with another recipe for these cookies and they were great. Adding vanilla sugar and just a little regular sugar to the powdered sugar mixtures works wonderful and adds great flavor as well as the pure almond extract...Love this!!

—mykidsmom

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Nov 07, 2005

I made this recipe recently to take to my children's preschool for United Nations Day. I don't know exactly how this traditional cookie should taste, so I can't rate its authenticity. I baked the cookies a bit longer than the directions because they were still so soft. Even then, the challenge became to coat the cookies with the powdered sugar without breaking the crescents. The cookies were very delicate. I allowed them to cool just a bit longer than suggested though I got them off the cookie sheets quickly so they didn't become a scraping challenge. Great flavor and a beautiful, delicate cookie. Thanks!

—ESTRIFFLER

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Dec 19, 2011

This is the recipe I have been looking for. My husband is Austrian and I have been eating these cookies in Austria for the last 15 years and now I make them myself. I LOVE them and this is the perfect recipe! don't listen to other reviewers that tell you to add egg. All that does is make them tough. This recipe relies on the butter to bind them and they are delicate and superb! thanks for sharing this family treasure, Christiane.

—jai

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Nov 05, 2006

These cookies taste delicious! As obvious in the recipe, this is a very buttery dough, which could be hard to work with. After cutting butter into the dry mixture, I scraped it onto a sheet of plastic wrap, and made a log wrapping the dough. I chilled the dough for a while before shaping it into crescents---but this could have been a mistake because cookies started becoming really lax and flattened out while baking. As the first reviewers suggested, I cooled the cookies on the baking sheet until they are solid. This way, I had no problem transfering them to the cooling rack. I will have to experiment with this but great cookies overall.

—kuratenko

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Nutrition

Calories
191 kcal
10%

Carbohydrates
15.9 g
5%

Cholesterol
27 mg
9%

Fat
13.4 g
21%

Fiber
1.1 g
4%

Protein
2.8 g
6%

Sodium
2 mg
< 1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Vanille Kipferl I

Serving Size: 1/18 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 18
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 191
Calories from Fat: 120

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 13.4g 21 %
Saturated Fat 6.7g 34 %
Cholesterol 27mg 9 %
Sodium 2mg < 1 %
** Potassium 61mg 2 %
Total Carbohydrates 15.9g 5 %
Dietary Fiber 1.1g 4 %
Protein 2.8g 6 %
Sugars 4.4g
** Vitamin A 6 %
** Vitamin C 0 %
** Calcium 2 %
** Iron 9 %
** Thiamin 12 %
** Niacin 12 %
** Vitamin B6 < 1 %
** Magnesium 7 %
** Folate 15 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.