“Eat these biscuits with a small glass of sherry or port… ” Sounds like my kind of biscuit!
Rosie over at Goldcoastgardendiary suggested I cook these little Christmas Bikkies as part of my WordPress recipe challenge. Perfect timing Rosie, as I want to make some biscuits and chocolates to give as presents.
And what are Vanilla Kipferl ? They are a traditional European crescent shaped biscuit. How could I not resist?!
Vanilla Kipferl
Ingredients ~
- 250g butter, softened
- 1/2 cup castor sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 200g walnuts
- 2 1/2 cups plain flour
- vanilla sugar
- vanilla bean
- icing sugar
Method ~
- Preheat the oven to moderate 180c. Line 3 or 4 baking trays with baking paper
- Beat butter, sugar and vanilla in a small bowl till light and fluffy
- Chop walnuts into a fine meal, be careful not to turn them into paste
- Add chopped walnuts to creamed mixture, then add sifted flour and mix into dough
- To shape the biscuits, take small pieces of the dough and roll between your hands into tapered rolls, and then shape into crescents on the baking tray
- Bake for around 25 mins. Remove from oven, allow to cool and sprinkle with vanilla sugar
- Store in a container with a vanilla bean. When you serve sprinkle with the extra Icing sugar.
You can use almond or hazelnuts instead of walnuts.
And the Verdict?
To start with I don’t have a mixing bowl, but what the heck a Salad Bowl (every good French household has one) doubled up, nor did I have a rack to cool the biscuits off.
I think I should have creamed the butter and sugar a bit more, it’s a long time since I’ve baked so I’m on what we might call “a re-learning curve”. I also realised I should have chopped the walnuts a bit finer as the mixture was a bit tricky to mold. I also didn’t manage to get them into crescent shapes, that I think was due to my clumsiness!
I’m also having to get used to our gas oven here – so I managed to brown the bottoms of the biscuits a bit too much. Lesson learnt and all that.
And the taste test ? Simply SUPERB. So three cheers to Rosie this Christmas 🙂 We’re having ours with some Sloe Gin we brought from home. Cheers!
YUM AND WOW!
Hi there and thanks 🙂 Just been over to see your latest post and am drooling, I need to practice much more at this baking business!
It takes a while to get used to a different oven and you also have the altitude to deal with when baking. I think they look delicious even if they aren’t crescents.
Hi Karen, I haven’t cooked with a gas oven for years, and I hadn’t thought about the altitude, everything is different, except my appetite!
My mother makes a version of these using ground walnuts but hers are quite pale in colour and, crescent shaped. I looked at your recipe to see if you had added cocoa powder to account for the dark colour. 🙂
Are these what you were making?
http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2009/12/09/nut-crescents/
You know you are spot on, the flour is unbleached so they do look a lot darker, and the link you sent is the same recipe, except theirs seem to be a) crescent shaped and b) much bigger! Thanks for the link 🙂
The unbleached flour would certainly account for the darker colour. I’m making Amanda’s (I am baker) sugar cookies today with my 26 yr old nephew … well, he’s watching while I do the work. 🙂 In another half an hour, when they have finished firming up in the fridge comes the rolling out, decorating and baking. Wish me luck as it’s my first time making sugar cookies. 🙂
Hi there 🙂 sounds like you will be having a great day, a helper in the kitchen is always good. Sugar cookies sound fabulous !
well i am thinking if you drink enough port! they will be great! c
Ha! I say ANY Port in a storm 🙂
Trying a new recipe in a strange kitchen & oven? I salute you! Although, looking at the recipe, I can see why you just had to try them. They sound delicious!
Thanks John, it is a little bit nuts of me, but it’s fun to try something new
These look so interesting. I’ve never heard of Kipferl until now!
Hi Joanne and thanks, I hadn’t heard of them before either, I’m sure if you made some they’d be amazing
That looks so good. I want to try it sometime
They are delicious, I just think I need to practice baking a bit more……
Reblogged this on arignagardener.
“Sugar cookies sound fabulous !”
My nephew was kind enough to take over the rolling and cutting after I had a little hissy fit (cookie dough ended up on the floor so auntie had to take a time out) about rolling it out. The remainder of four dozen cookies went home with him and I rolled out the rest (2 more dozen) today when cooler heads prevailed. The recipe was not at fault as the finished cookies tasted wonderful, it was a case of ‘operator error.
Sigh … we all have had days like this in the kitchen, I think.
we definitely do have days like that! But you managed to deal with it so 3 cheers 🙂
I am so excited that you made them and enjoyed them. I was inspired to make them again and got up early Christmas day so I could get them finished before everything went crazy.
They do go so well with a lovely sweet dessert wine or sherry or port.
Thanks heaps RosieG
Thank you Rosie, they were delciious and everyone really enjoyed them. In fact there have been demands for MORE!
Hi Claire – thanks so much for sharing these delicious looking delights. Am off to find friends with sloe gin to share.
Sloe Gin, a Vin Santo, anything really 🙂
What gorgeous biscuits! Must have been delicious 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thank you, they were perfect with a coffee and a wee shot of something 🙂