I know you’re going to love this almond crescent cookies recipe. It checks all the boxes for a good cookie- taste, texture, and pretty as a picture! Almond cookies have several versions made all over the globe, but I’m partial to these fun crescent-shaped cookies that absolutely melt in your mouth! This is a very old recipe that was given to me by my sister Christine. It was handed down to her from her mother in law and it goes way back in the generations of their family. They originally made the recipe with ground almonds but I find using almond flour to be a bit easier so that’s what I use.
Anybody can make these almond crescent cookies! They dress up any occasion or cookie tray!
Fire up the oven, and let’s start baking!
Jump To…
What I Love About Almond Crescent Cookies Recipe
This almond crescent cookies recipe is all about simple elegance. Here are some of the best parts of this recipe:
- Just the right amount of sweetness
- Pretty as a picture
- Makes a big batch
- Easy to make
Recipe Notes
This almond crescent cookies recipe is very straightforward to make. Here are a few things to keep in mind.
Chill the dough- I start with softened butter to bring the dough together, but the butter needs to have a chance to chill before baking. 1 hour is a minimum. If you skimp on the chill time, your cookies might spread and lose their crescent shape.
Don’t overmix- It can be a little tricky to figure out what ‘overmixing’ means. In the case of this recipe, you want to stop just when the flour is mixed and the dough is holding together. You need to get your hands dirty and gently bring this dough together by hand.
An electric mixer will beat it too much causing gluten will form. This will make your cookies tough, and that melt in your mouth texture will be lost.
Ingredient Notes
- Butter is best- You must use full fat, real butter in this recipe. Margarine or reduced-fat butter will not give you the same kind of texture and taste!
- Almond flour- There is a difference between almond meal and almond flour. I like the texture of almond flour in this almond crescent cookies recipe. I find the coarse texture of almond meal is too crumbly and interrupts the smooth, melt in the mouth results that you want with these cookies.
Storing Tips
These cookies store well in a tightly sealed container. They hold well for at least a week in a cool pantry. Be sure to give them a fresh dusting of powdered sugar before you serve them!
Can You Freeze This?
Proper freezing techniques are essential to maintaining the best taste and texture in these cookies. You can freeze either the dough or the baked cookies. For the dough, shape the crescents and put them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
To save space, you can crowd them onto the sheet since we’re not baking them at this point. Put the cookie sheet into the freezer for about 2 hours, or until the dough is frozen. Put the frozen crescents into a freezer bag.
You can bake straight from the freezer. Just allow a couple of extra minutes of bake time. Don’t forget to coat with powdered sugar after baking!
To freeze the baked cookies, I suggest wrapping them individually before putting them in a freezer container. They’re a bit delicate, so a rigid container would probably be better than a freezer bag to keep them from getting broken. After they thaw, give them another coat of powder sugar before serving.
Make Ahead Tips
This cookie dough will hold in the fridge for a couple of days. Be sure that it is well wrapped and stored away from anything with a strong odor, like onions, or you’ll have onion flavored almond cookies- ick!
How Long Can You Keep This?
Food handling guidelines suggest that frozen baked cookies are good for up to 6 months, and frozen dough keeps for about 2-3 months.
More Almond Cookies Recipes…
Almonds are an excellent foundation for cookies. Here are a couple of more Almond Cookies recipes to try!
Almond Crescent Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside
- In a mixing bowl using a handheld mixer on medium speed, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in almond extract and vanilla extract.
- Scrape down the bowl and add the flour, and salt. Knead with your fingers until dough comes together. Dough will be crumbly but should come together when shaped and compressed. If dough is too stick to neatly shape, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time. Do not add more than 1/4 cup totally.
- Roll the dough into a log. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Roll the dough into 1/2 inch balls then shape balls into crescents. Place on prepare baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove to a wire rack until cool enough to handle. While cookies are still warm, roll in confectioners' sugar. Return to wire rack and cool completely. Dust with more powdered sugar before serving or storing.
Fans Also Made:
Conclusion
This simple, elegant almond crescent cookies recipe is perfect for any occasion. They’re always a favorite wherever I take them! I can’t wait to hear how they work for you. Be sure to leave me a comment below!
Source: My sister Christine ♥
These are some of the richest and delicious cookies ever. Just don’t eat too many of them.
So happy you enjoyed these cookies, Cathy!
Hi Kathleen,
I’ll be making these for my family’s Christmas today. I looked for the simplest, most highly rated recipe and yours was it!
My only comment is that you might want to omit/move the “Preheat to 350” from the beginning of the recipe, since the dough has to chill for an hour before you bake. How long should the oven pre-heat ideally before baking?
Thanks,
Marirose
Hi Marirose. That’s a great suggestion. Will do it now. Regarding your question, it depends on your oven. Each oven takes a different amount of time. My oven takes 45 minutes. I hope you enjoy the cookies!!
Can you make these gluten free?
Hi Nancy. I haven’t tried making these gluten-free so I can’t advise. Sorry!
To make these gluten free I made them with 1 and 1/2 cups of almond flour and 2cups of rice flower or glutenfree flour alternative and then 2 1/2 teaspoons of xanthum gum for a binding agent (some premixed gluten free flour may already include a binder but if not you will have to add it). The rest of the ingrediants and bake time are the same 🙂
Thanks Laura!!
So almond slivers or Not is my question!…? I’m very excited to make these,your Family recipe astounds Wonderful and Delish! Thank You and your Sister for Sharing this!….My Favorite childhood Christmas cookies! Cant find crescents I’m stoe anymore either!…? I got almond slivers but I’m not sure if you use them or not!..?
Hey Gwen! My sister doesn’t use almond slivers but if you’d like, I think they’d add a nice crunch added to the top before baking.
HELP! Trying to use your recipe but just read the comment about adding almonds that does not show here. So…use them or not? What quantity, and prepared how?
Please advise at your earliest?
Hi, Dorene. In Step 1 mix in 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract. In Step 3, add the 1 cup almond flour.
Do you add the almond extract with the vanilla? I don’t see it mentioned in the instructions. Thank you.
Hi, Ann! Thanks for pointing that out. The almond extract and vanilla extract should be mixed together. Thank you! Happy baking <3
Thank you for posting this recipe. I’ve been looking for this. My Mom used to buy almond crescents at Christmas, but I can’t find them anywhere. I found other recipes, but I trust your recipes, so I know they will be great! I’ve been a subscriber for quite a while, and I love your posts. I especially like the details you give on storing, freezing, etc. I’m very excited that I can freeze and then bake these!!!! I’ll be baking them next week!!!
Hi Jacquelin! Thank you for your lovely comment. I hope you enjoy these cookies. My family makes this all year round and especially for holidays. I’m so grateful to my sister for letting me post this family recipe. Enjoy!!!
In the recipe it says “add almonds”, but I do not see any almonds listed in the ingredients. Anyone??
Hi Denise! Sorry for the editing error. The instructions have been updated.
The recipe ingredients doesn’t list almonds. However the instructions say add almonds. How much and blanched Or slivers ?
Hi JoeAnn! Sorry, there was an editing error. The recipe has been updated <3