Description
These Vegan Vanillekipferl are delicate vanilla crescent cookies made with vegan butter, blanched almonds, and a fragrant homemade vanilla sugar. Crisp on the outside with a tender, crumbly texture inside, they are perfect for festive occasions or a delightful everyday treat, all while being completely vegan and free from dairy.
Ingredients
Scale
Vanilla Sugar
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 1 vanilla pod
Dough
- 200 g vegan butter (block-style, cold and cubed)
- 125 g blanched almonds
- 250 g all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For Garnish
- 75 g powdered sugar
Instructions
- Make vanilla sugar: Slice the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Place the seeds and the scraped-out pod in a food processor with the granulated sugar and blitz for about 5 minutes until the vanilla is finely ground into the sugar.
- Sift vanilla sugar: Pass the vanilla sugar through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any larger vanilla pieces, ensuring a smooth mixture.
- Prepare dough base: Return the vanilla sugar to the food processor and add the blanched almonds, all-purpose flour, and sea salt. Blitz for a couple of minutes until everything is finely ground and evenly combined.
- Add butter and vanilla extract: Add the cold, cubed vegan butter to the processor and pulse briefly for about 10 seconds. Then add the vanilla extract and pulse just a few times to incorporate without overworking the dough.
- Form and chill dough log: Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead gently into a ball. Roll it into a 15-inch log shape, tightly wrap in parchment or plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
- Shape cookies: Slice the chilled dough log into 44 equal pieces of approximately 15 g each. Roll each piece into a ball, then into a small log, curling the ends to create crescent shapes. Place on a parchment-lined tray and chill for another 30 minutes.
- Bake: Preheat your oven to 180°C (356°F) fan or 200°C (392°F) conventional. Space the cookies about 1 cm apart on parchment-lined trays and bake for exactly 8 minutes until lightly golden.
- Cool cookies: Let the cookies cool on the baking trays for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them on the parchment paper to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Garnish: Once the cookies have cooled to room temperature, dust them generously with powdered sugar for a beautiful finish.
- Store: Store the Vanillekipferl in an airtight container, separating layers with parchment paper, and keep them at room temperature for up to three weeks.
Notes
- Ensure the vegan butter is cold to achieve the ideal crumbly texture without melting during mixing.
- Blanched almonds are preferred as they provide a smooth texture without almond skin bits.
- Sifting the vanilla sugar ensures no large vanilla pod fragments affect the cookie texture.
- Do not overwork the dough after adding butter to keep it tender and crumbly.
- Chilling the dough twice helps maintain the shape and improves texture.
- If desired, you can substitute the vegan butter with a nondairy margarine with similar fat content.
