Crescent Sugar Cookies | Eggless Kourabiethes (Greece) | Christmas Special Moon Shortbread

This melt in mouth sugar cookies/powder sugar coated shortbread from Greece are made for special occasions and festive Christmas season. I made it twice before posting here. First time I reduced the recipe to halve and second time i reduced the butter where original recipe calls for…After reducing the butter also these cookies were so delicious and melted in mouth. This is one among the 4 recipes sent by Swathi for baking partners challenge, thanks Swathi for this wonderful recipe, It just reminded the Indian bakery style cookies 🙂

Yields 40 – 45 Cookies aprox
Recipe Source :- Taste.com 

Ingredients 
AP Flour/Maida – 2 and 1/2 cups
Almond meal (ground almonds) –  1/2 cup
Butter – 250gms/2 Sticks/1 Cup (Softened) (I reduced to 3/4th Cup i.e 1 n 1/2 sticks)
Pure icing sugar – 2 n 1/2 Cups (Replace with 2 n 1/2 Cups Regular/Granulated sugar + (2 Tbsp+1tsp) Corn starch, blend well in mixie/food processor)
Vanilla extract – 2tsp
Baking powder – 1tsp
Orange Zest – Rind finely grated from 1 Orange (Refer Notes)
Milk – 2 Tbsp or more to attain dough consistency *

* If like to include egg then add 1 egg and skip milk for the above quantity.

Method

• Sift flour and baking powder, keep it in a separate bowl (Pic 1).
• Using an electric mixer, beat butter, 1 cup icing sugar, vanilla and orange rind until pale and creamy (Pic 1& 2).
• Add milk/egg and beat until well combined.
• Add all purpose flour mixture in batches (Pic 2).
• Add almond meal n stir until dough comes together (Pic 2 n 3).
• Preheat the oven.
• Using 1 tablespoon dough per biscuit, place it on baking tray (Pic 3).
• You can line the baking tray with cookie sheet/parchment paper.
• Roll out into 8cm-long sausage shapes, roll it with your palms, center thick and two ends bit thin and slightly bend it to form crescent.
• Bend to form crescent shapes (Pic 3).
• Place on baking trays, allowing room for spreading.
• Bake at 320°F/150°C for 20 minutes or until light golden (Pic 4).
• Stand for 5 minutes on oven with door open until firm.
• Place remaining sugar in a bowl, coat warm biscuits, 1 at a time, in sugar (Pic 4).
• Place on a wire rack to cool (Pic 4).

• Sift any remaining icing sugar over biscuits when cool.
• Now its my daughter turn to play with powdered sugar 🙂

Notes

1. Add milk in batches like a tbsp at a time while preparing dough and while rolling out it should not break/crack, that is the right consistency.
2. For easy peel, freeze the orange skin for atleast an hour before grating.