Sugary Almond Crescents
I am excited to finally be in Christmas baking mode. As I’ve said in years past, Christmas baking is my favorite thing in the whole world! Okay, maybe not most favorite thing, but it is definitely my favorite baking season. This year I am starting off with a new twist on our classic Pecan Snowballs and making almond crescent cookies. These are an almond flavored crescent shaped shortbread cookie rolled in powdered sugar and they are perfect for the season.
It is hard to describe how much we love these cookies. If you stand in the Mexican wedding cookie camp I know you’ll agree. They are rich and buttery with a mild almond cinnamon flavor. They are sturdy enough that they don’t go stale easily and are perfect to package up and give as gifts with a box of tea or jar of hot cocoa mix. They are ideal of children and adults and rarely, if ever, have I heard any protest about the cute crescent shape. When my daughter was little she called them mini-croissants. ha!
Enjoy these delicious gems this season. Add them to any Christmas cookie plate…but be sure to keep a few for yourself!
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup almond flour
- ½ cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for rolling
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Add the butter, almond flour, and sugar to the bowl of a food processor and blitz until completely smooth. Then add the flour and salt and blitz again. Add the almond extract and cinnamon and pulse just until the dough comes together.
- Transfer the dough to the countertop and roll it into two logs that are about 1-inch thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 4 hours in the fridge, or up to one day.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Bring the dough to room temperature and break off 2-inch pieces of it in your hand. Roll until just soft, then form into crescent shapes and line up on a lined cookie sheet. The cookies can be placed near each other since they won't spread. Bake the cookies for about 25 minutes, or until they are light brown.
- Once the cookies are cool enough to touch roll them in confectioners' sugar. Then place them on a rack to cool completely.
