Viennese Cresents

These cookies are a family tradition in my house around the holidays. Somewhat similar to a shortbread cookie, they just melt in your mouth. I adore these cookies while still hot out of the oven.

Recipe:

4 cups flour
2 cups butter
2 cups pecans (or walnuts or almonds or hazelnuts)
1 cup icing sugar
Pinch of salt
2 tsp vanilla

Keep in mind this is a double batch. You will get at least 3 dozen cookies from this batch. More if you make them bite sized.

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix (easy right?).

It will be done once you have a crumbly mixture that holds its shape when you squeeze it. If the mix is too dry add a couple of tablespoons of milk or water.

Roll it in a ball and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for an hour.

After the hour is up, take out of fridge and have a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper prepared. The oven should be preset at 350degrees.

Take small balls of dough and roll it out with your fingers to the shape of a crescent moon.

Here is a before and after shot of what they look like going into and coming out of the oven.

Cook them for only ten to twelve minutes until very slight brown shows up at the base.

Let them sit for a minute and in the meantime grab a bowl and fill with a cup or two of icing sugar. While the cookies are still hot take them one at a time (careful, the cookies are fragile) and coat them in the icing sugar.

Do the whole try quickly, then let them sit a few minutes, letting the icing sugar melt into the hot cookie. Then coat them a second time, this one will stay on thicker and give the cookie it's sweet taste.
Let cool completely (or if you're like me, eat them now) and arrange on a plate.

These cookies don't last long in my house. I only baked off half the batch tonight and then I freeze the other half of the dough so I can have fresh ones from the oven anytime.

And there you have it! A simple, delicious holiday cookie. ^_^ Enjoy!

Christmas at Work

Some of the most recent cakes I have pictures of. I did these last week. And yes, I know, it's only November... just a tad early for Christmas. A smidgen.

BUT! I had a good reason. At work we had a "Christmas Walk-Through". Managers from 40 stores came to our store to gather ideas to use in their own come Christmas. So I had to do up a small amount of "fancy" Christmas cakes. Except at my work, I have a time limit to what I can do. My boss will not let me do something if she thinks it will be time consuming or too "difficult". It's vaguely annoying to be stunted in my creativity, but to think of things within those boundaries can be a fun challenge too. These cakes are mostly regulars with a Christmas twist. The most commented on cakes were the Christmas tree cake and the blue snow cake. Everybody was thoroughly impressed. I wish had a chance to show them what I could really do, but at least this was fun anyways.

Now here are the gingerbread houses she asked me to make up for display. The base is from a kit we sell in store that I just fancied up. I love to make gingerbread houses. I am actually in the middle of making up a template for a larger more complicated house. I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures of the making of process for this one.

In the gingerbread houses in the picture here, I have ice cream cone trees, fondant snowmen, tootsie roll fencing, and chocolate shingles. Most of the rest is in royal icing.

Can't wait to make mine!