Description
These Greek Cretan Almond Biscuits are classic almond cookies with a delightful crunch and buttery flavor. Featuring toasted blanched almonds blended into a soft, tender dough, these cookies are lightly sweetened and enhanced with vanilla for a subtle aromatic touch. They are topped with almond flakes for additional texture and baked until golden for a perfect balance of chewiness and crisp edges. Ideal for tea time or festive occasions, these biscuits offer a traditional taste of Crete in every bite.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (100g) blanched almonds
- 2 1/2 cups plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- 4 tsp baking powder
- One pinch cooking salt / kosher salt
Wet Ingredients
- 250g / 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cups white sugar (or caster sugar)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature (~50g / 2oz in shell)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Almond Decoration
- 1 egg white, lightly whisked
- 1/4 cup almond flakes
Instructions
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Trays: Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease two large baking trays or spray with oil and line them with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Toast Almonds: Spread the blanched almonds evenly on a small tray and roast them in the preheated oven for about 7 minutes, shaking the tray once halfway through to ensure even roasting. This step enhances the nutty flavor.
- Cool and Crush Almonds: Allow the roasted almonds to cool on the tray. Once cooled, bash or blitz them using a food processor or place them in a ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin, aiming for a coarse sand texture with some small lumps for texture.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the plain flour, baking powder, and salt until evenly mixed. Set aside this dry mixture for later.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a separate large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar using a handheld mixer (or stand mixer with paddle attachment) until soft and fluffy, about 1 1/2 minutes on medium-high speed. Scrap down the sides as needed to ensure even mixing.
- Add Egg and Vanilla: Add in the large egg and vanilla extract to the creamed butter and sugar, continuing to beat until the mixture is fully combined. Do not worry if the mixture looks slightly split at this stage; it will come together when the flour is incorporated.
- Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients in three portions, beating briefly on low speed each time (about 7 seconds) and then increasing to medium until the flour is mostly mixed in. Some visible spots of flour are acceptable.
- Mix in Crushed Almonds: Add the crushed almonds to the dough and beat on medium speed until no visible flour remains and the almonds are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Form Cookies: Using a #40 cookie scoop or tablespoon measure, portion out 30 balls of dough, about 2 tablespoons each. Roll and slightly flatten each ball to about 2 cm (0.8 inch) thickness. Place them on the prepared trays spaced about 4 cm (1.6 inches) apart to allow for spreading during baking.
- Decorate: Brush the tops of each cookie lightly with the whisked egg white, then sprinkle a pinch of almond flakes on top. The egg white acts as glue to hold the almond flakes in place.
- Bake: Bake both trays simultaneously in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, or until the cookies in the center are light golden and those on the edges are slightly more golden.
- Cool: Remove the trays from the oven and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the trays. Then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before storing or serving.
Notes
- Blanched almonds are skinless almonds and provide a clean texture and color; regular almonds with skins can also be used but will add brown specks.
- Roasting almonds enhances their flavor but is optional.
- If using almond meal instead of crushed almonds, reduce the quantity to around 75g (about 1/2 cup) as it is finer and more absorbent.
- Using a handheld beater is sometimes easier as you can move it around; if using a stand mixer, the paddle attachment works best and scrape sides to mix evenly.
- The dough may look a little split after adding the egg but will come together once flour is added.
- For faster shaping, dollop all dough onto trays then roll and flatten each mound on the tray.
- Store the cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Do not refrigerate as they may harden.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 27 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Greek
