Christmas Baking
Walnut Crescent Cookies: Half Butter, Half Lard for a Crumbly Bite, Rolled in Vanilla Sugar
Tender walnut lard crescents made with half butter and half lard, rolled in vanilla powdered sugar.
NutritionApproximate, per serving
Instructions
Sift the flour and powdered sugar into a large bowl. Add the ground walnuts, vanilla and grated lemon zest.
Add the egg, the cold butter cut into cubes and the cold lard.
Key step: Work everything together quickly with your hands. Do not use a mixer! Work the mixture only until it comes together into a cohesive dough.
Long kneading or a mixer would make the fat separate from the flour, and the cookies would turn out hard after baking.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Take the dough out in small portions (keep the rest cold). On a board, roll thin ropes.
Cut the ropes into equal pieces and shape each piece into a small crescent.
Place them on the baking sheet with small gaps between them.
Bake for 10 minutes. The crescents should stay pale; the edges may be only lightly golden.
In a bowl, mix powdered sugar and vanilla sugar. While the crescents are still hot, roll them carefully in the mixture.
- Why lard? Lard contains no water, unlike butter. That limits gluten development in the flour, so the cookies come out extremely tender and crumble in your mouth.
- Handling the dough: Do not knead it. With this much fat it does not stick. If it still gets sticky (a warm kitchen), put it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Almond crescents: Replace the walnuts with the same amount of finely ground almonds.
- Half batch: If this amount is too much, simply divide all ingredients by two.