Kourabiedes (κουραμπιέδες)
Nov 29th, 2007 | By Peter Minakis | Category: Baking, Christmas, Dessert, Festive, Greek, Sweets
This Greek cookie is an almond shortbread cookie. Christmas time is coming and every home will certainly have Kourabiedes on offer for visiting house guests.
These cookies are fantastically simple in ingredients, not too difficult and I don’t think I’ve met one person that doesn’t like them. What’s not to like about butter, roasted almonds and icing sugar?
Kourabiedes (κουραμπιέδες)
(recipe is for 2 baking trays/80 cookies)
1 lb. clarified butter
1 cup icing sugar
2 egg yolks
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups of roasted almonds, coarsely chopped
1 shot of brandy
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 heaping Tbsp. of baking powder
5 cups of of all purpose flour
Extra icing sugar (for powdering)
- Using a mixer and a large bowl, cream your butter and sugar. Add the egg yolks and continue to mix.
- Slowly pour in the vegetable oil while still mixing.
- Add your brandy to a large glass and then add your baking powder and stir it until dissolved. Now pour this mixture, along with the vanilla extract and continue mixing until blended in.
- Start kneading with hands the mixture and s-l-o-w-l-y add the flour to the mixture until all the flour has been absorbed. Add the almonds and knead them into the dough mixture.
- Using your hand, grab a piece of dough the size of a walnut and form them into the shape of choice (I made crescents). Place each formed cookie on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Repeat process until all dough has been shaped into cookies.
- Bake in a pre-heated 350F oven (middle rack) for 30 minutes for each batch. Allow the cookies to completely cool (on the tray is fine).
- Place about 2 cups of icing sugar in a large bowl and roll the cookies in the sugar to powder them.
- The cookies should be stored in a sealed container, in a cool, dry place and they’ll keep for 3 months.
ΚΑΛΑ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥΓΕΝΝΑ!
Related posts:
- Celebrating Christmas With the Greeks [Translate] Regardless of whether you are Greek or not,...
- Baklava Cigars (Πουράκια) [Translate] Continuing with my series in the realm of...
- Margarites (Μαργαρίτες) or Baklava Daisies [Translate] Aren’t mom’s the best? Just when I thought...
- Saragli (Σαραγλί) [Translate] There are many riffs on Baklava that one...
- Baklava (Μπακλαβάς) [Translate] Finally…a baklava recipe and some background and opinion...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Wow those look delicious. I love sweets that are covered in powdered sugar! And they keep for 3 months too, fantastic! I bet they are so lovely.
I saw these a lot in the Greek shops here! Sooo delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
My mom used to make almond shortbread moon cookies though she used ground almonds rather than chopped. These look really good!
Oh yes, I love this kind of cookie. So bad for my diet though! (Sigh.)
Mmm, kourambiedes are my favorite! Yours look beautiful. I’m looking forward to making some for the holidays, too..and melomakarona!
Folks, I’ve eaten 5 Kourabiedes tonight!
Your kourabiedes looks absolutely intriging. I want to share a bite, and sure I try to bake them. I´ll let you know.
But I fear they won´t last three months.
I made some cookies that are similar to these last year, Peter – it’s a Donna Hay recipe and they’re called Greek almond cookies. I made them to give as a gift and it was a huge success!
Yours look delicious and you made me crave the cookies again!
Pat, you go tell Donna Hay they are Kourabiedes! They are easy ti make and Oh so buttery good!
Look lovely and delicious. I don’t think that these will last for the holidays more than a couple of days. Planning to post mine, as well as memomakarona soon. But shall start with the Christmas Cake first.
These Christmas cookies look as though they would melt in your mouth Peter!!!!
I couldn’t agree with you more: “What’s not to like about butter, roasted almonds and icing sugar?”
Yum Peter! These are my favorite holiday cookie! That powdered sugar in the last photos looks like snow!
Félicitations
J’adore la cuisine grecque
Merci pour cette recette qui me rappelle mon amie qui habite la grèce
Je vais l’essayer promis
On peut utiliser le beurre clarifié
que l’on achète dans les magasins
indiens????
où il faut le faire soit même
Si vous n’êtes pas confortable avec le français
j’essayerais d’écrire en anglais
Mais pour le lire je n’ai pas de problème
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Those Greek cookies look wonderful and ever so pretty! Yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
Just gorgeous.
Peter! Your blog absolutely reflects it’s name… on mange bien chez toi (there’s good food at your table)! Have a nice WE
I could hug the stuffings out of you for posting this recipe! I have a Hungarian background and thought I was missing one of my Grandma’s recipes. . .since she used to make these for me when I was a little girl. Well, I have just been looking in the wrong place! Your wonderful, as usual and thank you again because these will now be baked and shared with my family via airmail to different parts of the states. YaY! =D
Shandy, it appears cookies like these transcend many cuisines beyond Greek and as hard as it is to admit(as a Greeek), I’m glad that so many different ethnicities shared in the same good taste.
PS. Shandy, I’ve been to Budapest and it was a small Paris…perfect!
Renaissance, to clarify butter: melt the butter then chill it. Make a hole in the side of the bowl/pot and drain the liquids, discard. The solids (on top) are what’s left…clarified butter.
Hello Peter,
I modified your cookies a bit – without brandy and vanilla (I forgot)
but with some extra almonds. They are gorgious!!
http://neuesausderkueche.wordpress.com/2007/12/06/mandelhornchen-griechisch-kourabiedes/
Stop by if you like.
Peter, these were absolutely PERFECT! Thanks for the recipe – I can’t wait to make them again for Christmas this year
Gorgeous! And they look . . . doable, which is a big thing for me. Thanks, Peter!
[...] already shown you Kourabiedes and now you get to see the other standard offering, Melomakarona. I’m sure you can read the [...]