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 profile, making them all worth trying! In this simple crescent cookie recipe, adapted from Betty Crocker, almond flour is used to eliminate the need for chopping or grinding nuts—you can easily find almond flour in the baking or gluten-free aisle of most supermarkets. Perfect with a cup of coffee or as a festive addition to a holiday cookie tray, these crescent cookies are a delicious way to celebrate the holiday season.
What You’ll Need To Make Viennese Crescent Cookies
- All-Purpose Flour: The base ingredient of the cookies providing structure and texture.
- Almond Flour: Adds a nutty flavor and delicate texture to the cookies, enhancing their taste and mouthfeel.
- Butter: Provides richness and moisture to the cookies, ensuring a tender crumb.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the dough and contributes to its texture, while also caramelizing slightly during baking for a golden hue.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the overall flavor profile with warm and aromatic notes.
- Almond Extract: Provides a subtle almond flavor, complementing the almond flour and adding depth to the cookies’ taste.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Coats the cookies, adding a touch more sweetness and a decorative 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.
Beat until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes. 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.
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 30 minutes, 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.) Dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar again before serving, if you like.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure, you can substitute it with additional vanilla extract.
Yep — You can make them up to 5 days ahead and store in an airtight container at room temperature. Dust the cookies again with confectioners’ sugar before serving.
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. If you like to get ahead with your holiday baking, read more tips here on how to freeze cookie dough.
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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
- ⅛ 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.