Greek traditional almond snowball cookies

Greek traditional kourabiethes

Kourabies is a typical sweet that is widespread throughout Greece and Cyprus, which is classified as a traditional sweet, such as melomakarono, and which is usually prepared at Christmas. Its name comes from the Persian Qurabiye, which means cookie, pastry made of flour, butter and icing sugar.

Ingredients

  • 500 gr butter (fresh if you can find)
  • 150 gr icing sugar
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 2 tbsp rosewater
  • 3 pcs vanilla flavour powder / 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 600 gr all-purpose flour
  • 250-300 gr roasted almonds and cut into 2-3 pieces (you can leave them whole if you want)

Method

  1. In a large bowl add the butter, icing sugar, salt, baking powder, rosewater, vanilla flavour and beat for about 1 ‘with a hand mixer.
  2. Add the flour and beat again (carefully not to mess up) for about 1 minute.
  3. Add the almonds and knead gently by hand to go all over the dough.
  4. Shape in any shapes you want, place them on non-stick baking paper (in a baking tray).
  5. Bake at 180oC for 20 minutes.
  6. Leave for about 10-15 minutes to cool well.
  7. Sprinkle with flower water and powdered sugar.
Tips:

It’s important to leave them cool well, otherwise in a few days they will get muddy!

You better shape something with your hands because kourabiethes dough “cracks” cause of the almonds.