Viennese Crescent Cookies
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Delicate half-moon cookies that look like they’ve been covered in a blanket of fresh snow, crescent cookies are a classic Viennese treat—perfect for the holidays.
Viennese crescents, or Kipferl as they’re fondly known in Austria, are a holiday cookie with a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Shaped like whimsical half-moons, they look as though they’ve been dusted with fresh fallen snow. These cookies are cousins to snowball cookies, Mexican wedding cookies, and Russian tea cakes—all made simply with flour, butter, sugar, and ground nuts, yet each with its own unique flavor.
In this simple crescent cookie recipe, adapted from Betty Crocker, almond flour is used to eliminate the need for chopping or grinding nuts. They’re perfect with a cup of coffee or as a festive addition to a holiday cookie tray!
What You’ll Need To Make Viennese Crescent Cookies
- All-Purpose Flour: The base of the cookies along with the almond flour.
- Almond Flour: Adds a nutty flavor and delicate texture to the cookies. Find it in the baking or gluten-free aisle of most supermarkets.
- Butter: Provides richness and moisture to the cookies, ensuring a tender crumb.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the dough and contributes to its delicate texture.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the overall flavorwith warm and aromatic notes.
- Almond Extract: Enhances the almond flavor of the cookies.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Coats the cookies, adding a touch more sweetness and a pretty finish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, and salt.
In a large bowl, combine the butter and granulated sugar and beat until pale and creamy. Then beat in the vanilla and almond extracts.
Add dry the ingredients.
Mix on low speed until the dough comes together. Cover and chill the dough in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes, or until it’s firm enough to be easily handled.
For each cookie, use about 2 teaspoons of dough and shape it into a 2-inch long log. Gently bend each log into a crescent shape and space about 2 inches apart on your prepared baking sheets.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until the cookies are pale on top and lightly golden on the bottom. Let cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Using a fine sieve, dust the cookies all over with confectioners’ sugar.
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Viennese Crescent Cookies
Delicate half-moon cookies that look like they’ve been covered in a blanket of fresh snow, crescent cookies are a classic Viennese treat—perfect for the holidays.
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup finely sifted/super-fine almond flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- â…› teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar, for coating
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts. Add dry the ingredients and mix on low speed until the dough comes together. Cover and chill the dough in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes, or until it's firm enough to be easily handled.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and set two oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- For each cookie, use about 2 teaspoons of dough and shape it into a 2-inch long log. Gently bend each log into a crescent shape. (If the dough is crumbly after chilling for more than the recommended time, knead it slightly with your hands to make it more pliable.) Space the crescents about 2 inches apart on your prepared baking sheets. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking, until the cookies are pale on top and lightly golden on the bottom. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Using a small fine sieve, dust the cookies all over with confectioners' sugar. (Alternatively, you can gently roll the cookies in the confectioners' sugar until coated.) Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Dust the cookies again with confectioners' sugar before serving.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. Shape the dough into crescents, let set on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. Bake as needed directly from the freezer. (Allow 1 to 2 minutes longer in the oven.) To freeze the cookies after baking, let the cookies cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.
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Would it turn out okay if I substituted the 1 3/4 C all purpose flour for almond flour and only have almond flour in there to make it a gluten free treat? By the way, I made the original recipe and it was delicious!
Hi Lucy, glad you enjoyed them! I don’t recommend using all almond flour as I’m concerned about how it would impact the texture of the cookies.
Sub 1 teaspoon of almond extract
1 cup of crushed pecans. Refrigerate for an hr before forming into balls or crescents.