Kourabiedes are traditional Greek Christmas cookies that are buttery, crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth, infused with toasted almonds, and brandy, and coated in icing sugar.
Kourabiedes or Kourabiethes pronounced more like Kou-ra-mb-ie-des are among the two most favorite Greek Christmas treats. The other one is Melomakarona (Honey and Walnut Cookies).
These butter cookies with almonds are made in many other Eastern countries as well (slightly differently, though). They're also known as Qurabiya, Ghorayeba, Ghoriba, Gurabija, Kurabiye, etc.
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What Are Greek Kourabiedes
The Greek version of Kourambiethes is like an almond shortbread cookie flavored with cognac or brandy and coated in icing sugar. If you have ever tried Scottish Shortbread Cookies, you can imagine how good these Kourambiedes cookies taste!
Think of a melt-in-your-mouth butter cookie with bits of toasted almonds and sweet flavors of vanilla and brandy. It's so flavorful!
Kourabiedes Traditions
Kourabiedes are most popular during the Christmas holidays but traditionally they were also served in celebrations and weddings. The white color of the icing sugar symbolizes purity. They are also very similar to Mexican wedding cookies.
As for the Christmas tradition, Kurabie is the cookie we place next to the fireplace to treat Santa when he comes to bring gifts at night.
Ingredients
To make the Authentic Greek Kourabiedes recipe you need:
- Butter: it needs to be of good quality to make the best cookies. In the original Greek recipe, we used sheep butter but nowadays most people use cow butter. I prefer the original version if you can find some good sheep butter it will be best.
- Icing sugar: use it both in the cookie batter and to coat the cookies.
- Vanilla extract or vanilla powder.
- Cognac / Brandy. In Greece we use Metaxa. You can even use an almond liqueur as a substitute.
- All-purpose flour.
- Baking soda.
- Almonds: blanched and toasted (blanched = white almonds).
- Optional: Rose water to mist or lightly sprinkle on the cookies once baked. It gives a delicious aroma and also helps icing sugar to stick to them.
How To Make
To make the best Kourabiedes, you need to cream the butter with sugar very well first. That's the secret to fluffy, airy cookies that crumble and melt in your mouth. The process is the same as making a buttercream. With the addition of flour, baking soda dissolved in cognac, and toasted almonds afterward.
TIPS
- The butter should be completely soft. Cut it into pieces and leave it at room temperature for a couple of hours.
- Beat butter and icing sugar for at least 10 minutes. Scraping the sides of the bowl as you go. In the end, it should be as airy as a thick mousse.
- Gradually mix in the flour in batches. Don't overmix with the electric mixer. Use a wooden spoon to mix the remaining flour into the batter.
- Blanch and toast the almonds yourself for a better, stronger almond flavor. You can see my tutorial on How To Blanch Almonds here.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 5-10 minutes before coating them in icing sugar. This way the sugar won't get wet from the steam and form a skin on the cookies.
Storing
Store these delicious Greek shortbread biscuits at room temperature for up to 2 months (if they do last that long).
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Recipe
Best Recipe For Kourabiedes
Ingredients
For The Cookies:
- 300 grams (10.5 ounce) softened butter
- 100 grams (3.5 ounces) icing sugar + plenty more to coat the cookies
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons cognac/brandy
- 140 grams (5 ounces) blanched almonds (raw white almonds)
- 500 grams / 17.6 flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- OPTIONAL: rose water
Instructions
- Toast the almonds. Preheat oven to 170°C / 340°F. Spread the almonds on a lined baking sheet.
- Roast almonds for about 10-15 minutes or until they get a light golden color. Allow them to cool down to room temperature.
- Pulse almonds in a food processor until coarsely chopped.
- Beat the butter for a minute at high speed using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment on.
- Add the icing sugar and beat for at least 10 minutes. Or until very fluffy and airy. Scrape the sides of the bowl as you go.
- Mix in the vanilla.
- Dissolve the baking soda in the cognac.
- Add the flour gradually. Add the baking soda mixture as well. After adding half of the flour turn off the mixer. Mix in the remaining of the flour with a wooden spoon.
- Mix in the almonds.
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Shape the dough into round balls (about 30 grams each) and press to flatten a bit at the bottom. Don't overcrowd the cookies in the pan, bake them in two batches.
- Bake the cookies for 25-30 minutes at 170°C / 340°F or until honey-brown on top.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Coat the cookies in icing sugar. Add plenty of icing sugar in a wide bowl or small pan. Place a few of the cookies and sprinkle them very lightly with rose water (optional) we don't want to wet them only moisten them. Shake the pan and flip the cookies to coat with sugar all over.
- Seve. Place on a serving plate and dust with extra icing sugar on top if you like.
Can I make these using gluten free flour? Would the ratio be the same?
Hi Stella, I believe you can. But it always depends on the exact flour you're using. If the gluten-free flour you're using can replace all-purpose flour in a 1:1 ratio it should say so on the package.