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Add these decadent, melt-in-your-mouth Greek wedding cookies to your must-bake list! Buttery and sugar-coated, with the subtle taste of toasted almonds, these Kourabiedes Greek Wedding Cookies are the perfect treat for any special occasion, especially the holidays.
The best part? They take only 15 minutes of prep and just 30 minutes of bake time! Once you’ve taken your first bite, you’ll want to find every excuse to make these Greek butter cookies!
Kourabiedies cookies are the kind of cookie that fit right in at a special event like a wedding or a holiday celebration. But they’re also the perfect cookie for when you want to enjoy something sweet but subtle and light.
These delicate shortbread cookies are buttery and decadent, with a subtle almond flavor that makes them uniquely Greek cookies.
Greek recipes hold a special place in my heart. I especially love these Greek butter cookies because they’re easy to make at home and every bite is reminiscent of traditional Greek food I love.
One of my favorite things about these shortbread cookies is that they make one of the best food gift ideas– everyone loves a batch of these as a holiday treat!
What are Kourabiedes (Greek Cookies)?
Kourabiedes (also known as Kourabiethes and sometimes Kourambiedes) are a traditional Greek food, whose name comes from the Arabic for ‘cookie’. They resemble shortbread in their composition, but Kourabiedes recipes generally contain almonds.
Traditionally, along with other Greek desserts like melomakarono (or melomakarona), these butter cookies are served as wedding desserts, for baptisms, and for other similar special occasions, just as their name suggests!
Kourabiethes recipes come in a few shapes, including circles, oblong footballs, and crescents (which is how I like to make them!). No matter which shape you prefer to make your cookies, this kourabiedes recipe stays the same.
But you might need to bake them for a few extra minutes if you form them in a large ball shape, since they will most likely turn out larger than the crescents shown here.
Ingredients for Wedding Cookies
- 1 cup ground almonds
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 3 cups powdered sugar (for topping)
Very few ingredients are necessary to make this easy butter cookie recipe. Almonds give these cookies a delicious, subtle flavor, while the butter makes them decadent, rich, and wonderfully delicate.
This wedding cookies recipe makes about 24 cookies, depending on how large you make your crescents.
Baking Essentials
You’ll want to have these baking essentials on hand if you’re making cookies! These make great gifts for the aspiring and experienced baker, too.
How to Make Wedding Cookies
- Spread ground almonds in a shallow pan and toast in a 350°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Reduce the heat of the oven to 325°F.
- In a bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and egg yolk and mix well. Stir in vanilla and almonds.
- In another bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, blending until smooth.
- Pinch off walnut-size pieces of dough and shape into crescents. Place on non-greased baking sheets, spacing cookies about 1 inch apart.
- Bake in a 325°F oven for 30 minutes, or until very lightly browned. Place baking sheets on racks and let cookies cool for 5 minutes.
- Sift about half of the powdered sugar over wax paper and transfer cookies to it. Sift the remaining powdered sugar over the cookies to cover them. Let stand until cool, then store in a tightly covered container until ready to enjoy.
In total, you will spend about 15 minutes of prep and just 30 minutes of baking time making these easy butter cookies! They are so easy to make in just a short amount of time.
What are the best baking pans?
Try our favorite baking pans for this recipe (and all cookies we make!):
Best Food Gift Ideas
This almond cookies recipe has a history of being enjoyed for celebrations (it’s right in the name, after all!) so they make the perfect gift for your next special occasion or holiday party!
Package them in a mason jar with a festive ribbon, and your giftee with love you forever. Try serving them along with a melomakarona recipe, too, or even Greek Easter cookies – Koulourakia – for a delicious pairing of cookies!
More easy cookie recipes with few ingredients
- Gluten Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Copycat Levain Chocolate Chip Cookies
- No Bake Pumpkin Cookies
- Orange Cardamom Cookies
- Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Mexican Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
- Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Classic Sugar Cookies
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Kourabiedes (Greek Wedding Cookies)
🥘 Ingredients
- 1 cup ground almonds
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 3 cups powdered sugar for topping
🔪 Instructions
- Spread ground almonds in a shallow pan and toast in a 350 degrees F oven for 6 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Set almonds aside and reduce the heat to 325.
- In a bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add the 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar and egg yolk, mixing well. Stir in vanilla and almonds.
- In another bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, blending until smooth.In another bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, blending until smooth.
- Pinch off walnut-size pieces of dough and shape into crescents. Place on non-greased baking sheets, spacing cookies about 1 inch apart.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until very lightly browned. Place baking sheets on racks and let cookies cool for 5 minutes.
- Sift about half the 1-½ to 2 cups powdered sugar over wax paper and transfer cookies to it. Sift the remaining ¾ to 1 cup powdered sugar over the cookies to cover them. Let stand until cool, then store in a tightly covered container.
Notes
- Try different shapes: You can shape these cookies into balls, oblong footballs, or larger crescents. Just remember, if you’re shaping them into larger balls, they may require a few more minutes of baking time than our smaller crescents.
- Make it into a food gift: Try giving these as food presents! Put in a mason jar with a festive ribbon, and these cookies make an excellent holiday food gift.
Trish says
Please clarify: Baking soda is listed in the ingredients. However, baking powder is referenced in the recipe instructions. Looks like a delicious recipe. Even better, I actually have a bottle of Ouzo on hand! Looking forward to your response. -Trish
Em Beitel says
Trish, thank you for your comment! It’s meant to be baking powder – we appreciate you pointing out that discrepancy and have fixed it. We are looking forward to hearing how you like it!