Vanillekipferl - Almond Crescents

Homemade German Christmas cookies

Vanillekipferl are all-time favourite, traditional German Christmas cookies. Test my Almond Crescents recipe and you'll agree it is an easy German cookie recipe

To be honest, the Kipferl originate from Vienna, Austria. However, the delicious sickle-shaped cookies have been baked in Germany for Christmas for a long time. I can't think of a Christmas without Vanillekipferl.

German Almond Crescents

Rita's tip

For Christmas baking (but also for any other cakes and desserts) make you own vanilla sugar. It has much more aroma and flavour than commercially produced vanilla sugar.

Put approximately 200g sugar into a screw-top jar, slice one Vanilla Bean, remove the pulp with a small spoon and cut the bean into 2 or 3 pieces. Add pulp and the vanilla bean pieces to the sugar. Close the jar and shake well. Let the vanilla sugar rest for a few day, shake occasionally.

Vanillekipferl Recipe

Ingredients for approximately 25 - 30 Kipferl

260g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour (Type 405), sieved
2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
100g (1/2 cup) ground almonds
1 egg yolk
200g (1 cup) soft butter
1 pinch of salt
2 tabelspoons icing sugar to dust the kipferl

Directions

Mix the butter, salt, vanilla sugar and egg yolk in a bowl using a hand mixer.

Add ground almonds and flour and quickly knead a firm dough.

Divide the dough into quarters and form four rolls, each one about 2 to 3cm (0,78 zo 1,18 inch) thick. Cover the rolls with cling wrap and cool them for about an hour.

Flour the worktop and cut the rolls into slices (about as thick as a finger) and form little crescents.

Put the Kipferl on a greased baking sheet, or a sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 160°C / 320°F in a pre-heated oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

Remove the almond crescents carefully with a palette knife.

Fill the icing sugar into a small bowl and dust the Kipferl while they are still warm.

Let the cookies cool completely on a cooling rack.

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