And here we are. Only a couple days to go. How is your “special” time of the year turning out? A bit stressed to have all presents ready and Christmas dinner planned out? Wondering just how you will get those elfs to clean your house to proper perfect Christmas-sparkle?
Even-though Christmas usually has the potential to threaten us with a certain load of stressful situations, it also gives us a great chance to unwind and enjoy, don’t you think? I decided that this year I rather view the cookie jar half full than half empty ;–) And actually… who says it cannot be filled up again? Even overflow with sweet, nutty goodness?? After all there is still one weekend between now and Christmas to make some time for baking delights! I say: off we go to knead some dough! Let’s shake off winter’s cold as the kitchen gets all warm and cosy with the oven turned on.
Let’s make a batch of delicious classics:
vanilla crescents :–) They truly cannot be missed out on in our home, if it is supposed to be a “right” Christmas time. And I love them even more since I packed them with an extra amount of nutrients using wholesome ingredients :–D
So let us listen to merry music as we roll the cookie dough to crescents. Let’s forget all about the end-of-year stress as we dress them in snowy white vanilla sugar dust. Let’s enjoy the nutty, crumbly taste of a crescent or two, as we watch a candle on the window sill, with it’s flickering humble flame.
Then wait and see Christmas magic happen as the gorgeous Xmas-cookie-smell is slowly spreading through the kitchen and on, up and down the stairs; turning enchanting circles through the living room, the kid’s rooms, even the bathroom is getting a dose of a nice scent for a change ;–) Until the whole house is immersed in homely feel-good fragrance. And just like fairy (sugar) dust, it has the power to enchant every nose on it’s way. May it be little noses, that will be reminded that Christkindl and Santa are going to get rather busy here in only a few more days. May it be big noses, that will be transferred back for a short visit to their own little-nose-time and the wonders they experienced during the last few weeks of their childhood years. May it be crinkly, bigger noses, that will wrinkle even more, as a knowing smile spreads beneath them, thinking about just how those little noses will soon be jumping up and down with happiness…
Have a wonderful Christmas time, everyone!
Ingredients:
- 170 g whole spelt flour (or whole wheat flour)
- 200 g finely ground almonds
- 150 g butter (cooled)
- 1 egg
- 70 g whole cane or coconut sugar
- 1 dash salt
- approx. 3/4 cup regular caster sugar and 1 tbsp vanilla powder for dusting (whole cane or coconut sugar turned to powder unfortunately does not give the vanilla enough “space”)
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 200 C and line your baking tray with baking paper.
- Mix all dry ingredients well in a medium sized bowl. Work in the butter with a pastry blender or simply cut small pieces with a knife. Then rub the butter and flour-mix between your hands until well combined and crumbly. Mix in the egg with your hands. Pour it all on your working surface and knead it until you have one smooth piece of dough. Shape it like a big monstrous sausage.
- Wrap in cling foil or place in an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, better one hour. It is important to have it cooled properly so you don’t end up with a sticky crumbly mess when making the cookies ;–)
- Cut the “sausage” into slices and divide them by two or four – depending on the preferred cookie size.
- Shape each piece to a crescent by rolling it with your flat hand. Set on your tray.
- Bake for approx. 10 minutes but keep a close eye on them after around 8 minutes as baking times may vary with cookie sizes and ovens. They should get lightly brown around the edges.
- In the meantime sieve the caster sugar onto a shallow bowl or soup plate and mix in the vanilla.
- Once out of the oven, leave your crescents cool for a few minutes as they are still quiet fragile while hot. Finally transfer a few crescents at a time to the sugar dusting and turn them over until covered in dusting. Repeat with the remaining crescents and enjoy!
Yields around 2 baking trays.