Greek shortbread cookies (Kourabye) with walnuts

Votes: 4

Time: 1 hour 50 min.
Complexity: easily
Quantity: 24 kurabye cookies

These Greek holiday cookies are most popular at Christmas, but are also made for weddings, Easter, and other holidays. They are almost always served dusted with powdered sugar. At Christmas, whole cloves are traditionally stuck into the cookies, symbolizing the spices the Three Wise Men brought to Bethlehem.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

3/4 cup walnuts
1.5 cups premium wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (110 g) softened butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 yolk of category CO egg
1 tbsp brandy
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons orange blossom water
3/4 cup powdered sugar for dusting

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

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Recipes with similar ingredients: premium flour, shortcrust pastry, walnuts, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, brandy

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Toast the walnuts until golden brown and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Let cool, then chop about half the walnuts (you should have about 1/2 cup chopped nuts). Pulse the remaining walnuts in a food processor until finely chopped (you should have about 1/4 cup).
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and nuts.

In another medium bowl, beat the butter, sugar, egg yolk, brandy, and vanilla extract with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes.

Using a mixer at low speed, mix in the nuts until a loose dough forms. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for an hour.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

Using a tablespoon, scoop out 2.5 cm (1-inch) portions of dough and roll them into balls between your palms. Pinch the ends of the balls to create a soccer ball shape. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until set and golden brown, about 18 minutes.
Remove the cookies from the oven and immediately spray them lightly with orange blossom water. (If you don't have a pastry brush, simply dip your fingers in the water and swish them over the cookies a few times.) Be careful not to wet them, just add a light, floral scent.

Place powdered sugar in a bag and add 5-6 warm cookies. Gently toss the cookies to coat them. Remove the cookies from the bag and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Serve.

AdviсeThe dough can be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Store the finished cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Wrap the finished cookies in plastic wrap, then wrap them in aluminum foil, and store for up to 2 weeks. To serve, let the cookies come to room temperature, then dust with powdered sugar.

If you can't find orange blossom water, look in specialty stores or online.