Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies

From Food Network Kitchens

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (33)

Cook Time:
25 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
about 2 dozen cookies

Times:

Prep: 25 min
Inactive Prep: 1 hr 0 min
Cook: 25 min
Total:: 1 hr 50 min

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Ingredients

3/4 cup walnuts
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon brandy
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons orange flower water
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Toast the walnuts until golden brown and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Let cool, then chop about half of the nuts (you should have about 1/2 cup chopped). Pulse the remaining nuts in the food processor until finely ground (about 1/4 cup ground).

Stir the flour, baking powder, salt and nuts together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

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

At low speed, stir in the nut mixture to make a crumbly dough. Cover the bowl and set dough aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or coat with nonstick spray.

With a tablespoon, scoop out 1-inch pieces of dough and roll into balls between the palms of your hands. Pinch the ends of the balls to make a football shape. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies set and start to brown, about 18 minutes.

Remove cookies from the oven and immediately sprinkle them lightly with the orange water. (If you don't have a brush, simply dip your fingers into the water and flick it over the cookies a few times.) Take care not to douse them, just enough for them to carry the scent of flowers.

Put the confectioners' sugar in a bag, and add 5 to 6 of the warm cookies to it. Very gently toss the cookies to coat with sugar. Remove them from the bag and cool cookies on a rack. Repeat with remaining cookies. Serve.

Busy baker's tips: Dough can be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Baked cookies can be wrapped in plastic, then aluminum foil, for up to 2 weeks. To serve, let cookies come to room temperature before dusting with confectioners' sugar.

Cook's Note: If you can't find orange flower water, try specialty stores or online.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
Steven Goldsboro, NC 02-01-2010
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Delicious!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

These are great cookies. After some research on the web, I did find that traditionally Kourabiedes are made with almonds, so... I went with that although I am sure they'd be great with walnuts as well. I also added just a scant 1/4 tsp. of pure almond extract which I highly recommend (along with the vanilla) and 1/2 cup more sugar for sweetness after reading some of the reviews. I did have orange water on hand but I honestly don't think it added anything special to these cookies, so if you don't use it they'll still be great. I did find the dough a bit crumbly, but when compressed with the warmth of your hand they hold together and roll fine. I used a heaping 1-inch cookie scoop for portion size and for a double batch came out with 52. They baked beautifully in 15 minutes. For the last step I filled a small bowl with powdered sugar to coat the cookies. I coated them once when they came out of the oven, let them cool and coated them one more time before putting them in the cookie tin. They're buttery, nutty and just delicious and go great with a cup of espresso! They're easy to make and a great addition to anyone's cookie collection. I thinking next time of putting an Italian twist on these and making them with hazelnuts and Frangelico.Read more
recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
moriah buena vista, VA 01-30-2010
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Awesome
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Awesome cookies....however I substituted orange juice for the brandy and omitted the orange flower water.
recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
Sylvia New Baltimore, MI 01-19-2010
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walnut cookies
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

Just tried these cookies and found them to be really delicious, however, I will be adding a little more sugar to the recipe. ... Thought they needed just a bit more sweetness.Read more
recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
null null, null 12-09-2009
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best !!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Fantastic !!!
recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
Rachael Tampa, FL 11-30-2009
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Delicious! My family loves these!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I've made these every year since Food Network sent me the recipe during the 12 Days of Cookies. I always make an extra batch... for a good friend who is Greek. She loves them too and tells me that she saves the majority of the batch to take with her to snack on during the long plane trip home to Greece for Christmas. It's quickly becoming a case of Christmas not being the same without them, so I have to make them, but the recipe is so easy and satisfying, I have no problem doing that. The cookies themselves are kind of like shortbread, in that they're buttery, and sort of like a pecan sandie, in the overall texture. These are far better than other similar cookies I've tried over the years. Being from Florida, I substitute rum for the brandy because it's something I have on hand, and pecans for the walnuts because I can get them local. I also don't use the orange flower water because I've not been able to find it in stores (maybe I'm just not looking in the right places?), but rather I put a little orange extract in water and sort of fling it with my fingers. *shrugs* It works and the cookies are to die for delicous.Read more
recipe Kourabiedes (Greece): Walnut Sugar Cookies
Susan Deerfield Beach, FL 11-28-2009
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Recipe very clear
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

To the reader who didn't try the recipe, but rated it a one star. I guess you really have no idea how to read a recipe or... have never heard of orange flower water. How can you possibly rate a recipe without trying it????? Try looking up a definition of orange flower water on the internet. Read more