When it comes to the greek traditional christmas cookies: kourampiedes, there as many recipes as greek chefs. The thing is to focus to the right tips on how to manage all the ingredients and how to maintain the cookies fresh when ready. This recipe I give you is an easy version with simple ingredients that I tried last year for the first time. Here are all the tips that you need to have in mind:
Tips
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- Every recipe starts by beating together the butter with the sugar. The fluffier the butter mixture becomes in the mixer, the greater and crispier the cookies will be. The mixture should look like whipped cream, which requires about 20 minutes of constant beating in the mixer.
- Once you are done with this process you add flour. You need to beat in the flour at a low speed in order not to dissolve the fluffy texture you already achieved.
- Always bake at low temperature because you want make your cookies soft, to maintain the buttery taste and give them a nice white color.
- If you are going to use rose water you will have to squirt them when they are hot, just after you take them out of the oven.
- Sprinkle with powder sugar when they are cool. Otherwise the first layer of sugar that will come in contact with the cookies will soften.
- Equally important to the execution of the recipe is the conservation and preservation of your cookies. Should cover them well because they tend to absorb moisture.
- They can be maintained fresh up to three months if tightly closed in a metal box. If you have no metal box you can do the following trick: wrap them in foil and close them in an airtight plastic box.
- Icing sugar contains a small percentage of corn flour to not accumulate moisture. To make sure that all cookies will stay fresh, add an extra 1/2 spoon cornflour in icing sugar prior of sprinkling.
- You may cut them in different shapes eg stars, hearts, etc.. if you don’t add almonds in the mixture.
- You may give them extra flavor by adding vanilla, orange zest or lemon zest.
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Ingredients
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- 300 g. butter milk (from goat's milk, usually found in a jar, at the supermarket) ,
- 120 g. almonds ,
- zest of 1 orange ,
- 1/2 tsp baking powder ,
- 1 pinch vanilla powder ,
- 110 g. powdered sugar + extra for dusting ,
- 25g. black rum ,
- 600 g. flour for all uses ,
- Rose water for sprinkling
Instructions
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- Prepare the almonds. Spread on a baking sheet and bake at 160 ° C (in preheated oven in resistors) for eight minutes. Once completely cool beat in a mortar and break into thick pieces. ,
- Beat butter with the sugar in the electric mixer on high speed for about 20 minutes. ,
- Add flour, baking powder, orange zest and vanilla and continue beating at lower speed for 10 minutes. ,
- Finally add the almonds and rum. ,
- Shape round buns in diameter 3 cm. Push lightly with your finger on top. ,
- Put on a baking sheet, and bake in a preheated oven at 170 ° C for 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of your cookies. ,
- Remove from oven and sprinkle with rose water. ,
- Allow to cool and sprinkle with icing sugar
