I’m going to be completely honest, Thanksgiving aside, ever since I finished my BakeOff Bake Along 2015, I’ve barely stepped into the kitchen to bake anything. I was done with sweets. But the festive season sends me full swing back into the baking spirits.
Ever since watching a Big Hairy Bikers special about desserts in Austria, it’s become my baking mecca, of sorts. (I’m also only slightly ashamed about admitting that I sometimes watch the Big Hairy twosome.) So for a delicious Christmas biscuit (cookie) treat, I bring you vanillekipferl: a buttery, perfectly crumbly cookie that goes great with both coffee and mulled wine.
Vanillekipferl
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
180 g butter, cubed
70 g of shelled and ground almonds
50 g sugar
2 egg yolks
210 g plain flour
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla
For dusting:
6 tablespoons of royal icing sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Instructions:
In a large bowl, add the flour and salt. Then add the cubed butter. Ground down the butter into the flour with your fingertips until the dough resembles coarse breadcrumbs. (As if you were making pastry).
Then add your ground almonds, sugar, vanilla and egg yolks. Mix it all together throughly. If you’re having trouble getting the dough to come together add a splash of water. Roll the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Cover a baking sheet in baking parchment. After the dough has chilled, very, very lightly flour your work surface and roll the dough out until it’s 1/2” thick. Divide the dough into strips and roll each strip, curving it into a crescent shape. Place your cookies on your baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator for a further 10 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 200 C. Bake your cookies for 10 minutes. Whilst the cookies are baking, combine your vanilla and icing sugar to make a flavoured vanilla icing sugar. Put it in a medium bowl. Once the cookies are out of the oven, immediately roll them in the sugar before setting them aside on a wire rack to cool.
This post was part of the Expedia World on a Plate Challenge. I, as stated, used Austria has my inspiration. You should check out great deals on Expedia package holidays to Austria so that you can go try out all the sweets for me!
What’s your experience with Austrian desserts?
