*  Exported from  MasterCook  *
 
                                KOURABIEDES
 
 Recipe By     : 
 Serving Size  : 30   Preparation Time :0:00
 Categories    : Cookies                          Greek
 
   Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
 --------  ------------  --------------------------------
    2       c            Butter, unsalted
    1       c            Sugar, powdered
    3                    Egg yolks
    3       tb           Brandy
    2       ts           Vanilla extract
    6       c            Flour
      1/2   c            Almonds (blanched),
                         -chopped
    1       lb           Sugar, powdered
                         -(one package)
 
   Beat the butter with the sugar until it becomes
   fluffy.  Add the egg yolks one by one, beating
   continuously. Add the brandy and vanilla.
   
   Blend in the almonds and the flour, a cup at a time.
   Use enough flour to get a firm dough (it may take a
   bit more or less than the amount mentioned in the
   ingredients list). Use your hands to do the mixing, as
   an electric mixer will be useless after the first two
   or three cups of flour have been added. Place the
   dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
   
   Shape the dough into balls, about one inch in
   diameter, flatten them and place on greased cookie
   sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 20 minutes.
   
   Remove from the oven.  Roll each cookie (while it is
   still hot) in the powdered sugar and put it back on
   the cookie sheet.  Repeat this step once more, so that
   you get a thicker coating.
   
   Place the coated cookies on a platter, liberally
   sprinkling each layer and the bottom of the platter
   with powdered sugar. When you are done, there
   shouldn't be any sugar left. Let them cool and they
   are ready to eat!
   
   NOTES:
   
   *  Traditional Greek Christmas cookies coated with
   powdered sugar -- This is one of the two kinds of
   confection that are traditionally consumed in large
   quantities in Greece during the holiday season (the
   other is melomacarona). As a quick lesson in greek,
   “kourabiedes” (pronounced “kou-ra-bi-ETH-es”, is the
   plural of the word “kourabies” (kou-ra-bi-ES). Now all
   you need to enjoy them is the recipe. I got this one
   from a Greek cookbook and translated it into English.
   
   *  The cookbook suggests the following variations:
   using ouzo or scotch instead of brandy, and almond
   extract instead of vanilla extract, but I have not
   tried any of them. Also, putting granulated instead of
   powdered sugar in the dough didn't seem to affect the
   recipe, there’s so much sugar in it, that you couldn't
   tell the difference anyway.
   
   *  The cookbook also suggested using twice the amount
   of sugar for coating. This is obviously too much, but
   it should make you realize that you must really be
   liberal with the sugar!
   
   : Difficulty:  Easy to moderate.
   : Time:  30 minutes preparation, one hour
   refrigeration, 20 minutes baking. : Precision:
   approximate measurement OK.
   
   : Kriton Kyrimis
   : Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
   : princeton!kyrimis kyrimis@princeton.edu
   
   : Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust
  
 
 
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