Vanillekipferl cookies, also known as vanilla crescents, are Christmas cookies of German-Austrian origin, but are widely spread in South Tyrol and other neighboring countries, although they are now known everywhere.
Vanillekipferl are shortcrust cookies to which finely chopped almonds are added and then covered with powdered sugar. The recipe for these German Christmas cookies is very simple, especially since no special molds are needed to make them: the shape is given by hand in a very simple way. You will need only a minimum of manual skill.
The original Vanillekipferl recipe does not include eggs or baking powder: the crumbly texture comes from the butter used in the recipe.
For convenience, I used vanilla sugar and powdered vanilla sugar, but if you have the opportunity, use vanilla or vanilla extract: the aroma of these cookies will surely be even more intense.
Well, let’s move on to the recipe and see how to prepare these delicious Vanillekipferl cookies, but first, I’ll leave you the recipe for some other Christmas desserts that might interest you!
At the end of the recipe, you will also find the procedure to make Vanillekipferl with the Thermomix.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 6
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: German
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, Christmas
- Energy 598.50 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 55.82 (g) of which sugars 22.39 (g)
- Proteins 8.03 (g)
- Fat 38.62 (g) of which saturated 18.86 (g)of which unsaturated 10.23 (g)
- Fibers 3.12 (g)
- Sodium 10.24 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 111 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients to make Vanillekipferl
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cups butter (soft)
- 1 cup cups almond flour (or blanched almonds finely ground)
- 3/4 cup cups powdered vanilla sugar
- 3 packets vanillin
- as needed powdered vanilla sugar
Tools
- Baking sheets
- Bowl
- Scale
- Powdered sugar sifter
- Mixer
Steps to prepare Vanillekipferl
Let’s see together how to prepare these delicious vanilla crescents. Before starting, I recommend taking the butter out of the fridge at least an hour before.
Also, if you don’t have almond flour, you can use blanched almonds (as I did) and then finely grind them with the Thermomix or any other kitchen mixer or chopper.
Put the almonds in a blender or mixer (I used the Thermomix for convenience).
Grind them finely.
Put the flour, powdered vanilla sugar, and finely chopped almonds (or almond flour).
Add two packets of vanillin.
Cut the soft butter into pieces and add it to the bowl with the other ingredients.
Knead the dough just enough to obtain a smooth dough. You can also use a stand mixer, the Thermomix, or just knead by hand.
Flatten the dough and wrap it in some plastic wrap.
Place the Vanillekipferl cookie dough in the refrigerator and let it rest for an hour or more.
After the resting time in the refrigerator, take the dough and break off small pieces. To make them all the same size, I weighed pieces of 20 g each.
With your hands, form a small cylinder of 4-5 cm in length, trying to taper the ends.
Then slightly curve the cylinder, giving it the traditional crescent shape of the Vanillekipferl.
Place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, spacing them slightly. Put the tray in the fridge for half an hour and in the meantime, preheat the oven to 350°F to warm it up.
After this resting time, bake the cookies in a preheated static oven for 10-11 minutes. Don’t touch them right out of the oven as they are very delicate and may break. The cookies should remain light in color.
Sprinkle the cookies while still hot with plenty of powdered vanilla sugar.
Once cooled, sprinkle the Vanillekipferl again with powdered sugar.
Your Christmas cookies are ready to be enjoyed with a cup of tea or milk and they are perfect for gifting too!
You can make Vanillekipferl with the Thermomix.
Put the blanched almonds in the mixing bowl: 15 sec speed 10. Gather at the bottom with the spatula.
Add the rest of the ingredients: 1 min speed 4-5.
Take the dough, compact it by hand, slightly flatten the dough, and wrap it in plastic wrap. Place the cookie dough in the fridge for at least an hour and then proceed according to the recipe.
Storage and Tips
– Vanillekipferl can be stored in a tin or another well-closed container protected from humidity. They can last many days while maintaining their goodness: for this reason, they are perfect for gifting. In this case, you can make them even a week in advance.
– Since butter is a main ingredient in this type of cookie, I recommend using high-quality butter. Ideally, you should use Bavarian butter or centrifuge butter, but if due to lactose intolerance you cannot use butter, opt for lactose-free butter, but stay away from margarine and seed oil: these are suitable for other types of cookies, but not for these.
– For the successful baking of these cookies (but it is a general rule for all butter cookies), resting in the refrigerator before baking is extremely important: this will allow the dough to settle again and more importantly, not lose its shape once in the oven.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Can butter be replaced?
No, in this type of cookies, what gives fragrance and goodness is butter itself. If the problem is lactose intolerance, you can use lactose-free butter, but I do not recommend oil or margarine.
If I don’t have almond flour, how can I make it?
Almond flour can also be obtained from almonds with skin. If you have almonds with skin, you can put them in a bowl with cold water and heat the bowl in the microwave at maximum power for 5 minutes. Let them rest for a few minutes in the hot water, then drain them and peel them with your hands: the skin will come off very easily. Before grinding them, dry them well with a dry cloth.
