Kourabiedes Greek Butter Cookies

Kourabiedes Greek butter cookies are traditional Christmas cookies. If you're dreaming of a white Christmas, these cookies are for you!

Kourabiedes (pronounced kou – rab – YE – des) are traditional Greek cookies made during Christmas. In some parts of Greece they are also handed out to guests at christenings and weddings. They are one of the tastiest gifts I make for family and friends every year!

Love Greek desserts? Try my Tsoureki Greek Easter Bread, my Melomakarona Greek Christmas Honey Cookies, or my Galatopita Greek Milk Pie.

Jump to:

• Why this recipe works:
• What do kourabiedes taste like?
• WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE KOURABIEDES
• VARIATIONS
• HOW TO MAKE KOURABIEDES GREEK BUTTER COOKIES
• TOP TIP
• TIPS FOR THE BEST KOURABIEDES GREEK BUTTER COOKIES
• FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
• MORE GREEK RECIPES!
• Recipe

Why this recipe works:

• There are only 5 ingredients.
• It’s easy to make. It’s practically foolproof!
• It’s tried and trusted! This recipe has been in my family for many, many years!

What do kourabiedes taste like?

Kourabiedes are a type of shortbread cookie filled with chopped almonds. They’re crunchy, nutty, perfectly buttery, and dusted with powdered sugar. They just melt in your mouth!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE KOURABIEDES

INGREDIENTS

VARIATIONS

• You could use almond extract or even ouzo instead of vanilla extract!
• For chocolate kourabiedes, add 2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the dough and mix by hand.
• Many traditional Greek kourabiedes recipes call for food grade rose water. If you’d like to add it to the kourabiedes, just sprinkle some rose water on the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven. Then let them cool slightly before dusting with powdered sugar.

HOW TO MAKE KOURABIEDES GREEK BUTTER COOKIES

STEP 1

Beat the butter and the ½ cup powdered sugar for about 20 minutes. Then add the vanilla extract and mix well.

STEPS 2-3:
Add the almonds and mix until just combined. I like using a spatula to fold them in, but you could also do it by hand.

STEP 4

After that, add the flour, ½ cup at a time.

STEPS 5-6
Gradually and gently mix the remaining flour in by hand until the dough forms into a ball and is pliable. If necessary, add more flour, but don't overmix. If you accidentally add too much flour, just add some melted butter to the dough. The dough should come together in one big piece as shown in Picture 6.

STEP 7

Divide the dough in half. Put half of the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it to a thickness of about an inch (2.5 cm). Keep in mind that there are no leaveners in this recipe so the cookies won't rise much when baked. To me, an inch (2.5 cm) is the perfect thickness!

TOP TIP

Traditionally, these cookies are shaped by hand into small mounds or crescent moon shapes, but I roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and then use cookie cutters to cut out different shapes. This saves me so much time in the kitchen! First of all, there’s no mess because I don’t have to flour my work surface and it’s a lot faster and easier than shaping the cookies by hand. Furthermore, all the cookies come out the same size, which means they all bake evenly!

STEP 8
Cut out different shapes with a cookie cutter.

STEP 9
Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake.

STEP 10

Generously dust a cookie plate or platter with powdered sugar. Put the cookies on top and dust with more powdered sugar.

TIPS FOR THE BEST KOURABIEDES GREEK BUTTER COOKIES

Butter

Make sure the butter is at room temperature. You also really need to beat the butter and sugar together until it’s light and fluffy and that takes around 20 minutes on high speed. You want to incorporate as much air in it as possible.

Flour

When adding the flour, don’t overmix it because the cookie will become tough. Use just enough flour to make a pliable dough. If you accidentally add too much flour and the dough becomes crumbly, just add a little melted butter until it comes together.

Almonds

Traditionally, almonds are roasted and then added to the dough, but I never roast them because they tend to become really hard after the cookies are baked. I always use raw almonds in the dough.

Dough

These cookies will not spread because there are no leaveners, so you can bake them straight away without chilling the dough and save time! Without any leaveners, I found that these cookies are also sturdier – this is especially important if you’re packaging cookies!

Baking

These cookies should be baked until JUST light brown in color, otherwise they can get hard.

Dusting with powdered sugar

Allow the cookies to cool slightly before adding the powdered sugar. If you add the powdered sugar when the cookies come straight out of the oven, a damp layer of sugar will form, making them soggy on top.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

MORE GREEK RECIPES!

Let me know how these kourabiedes turn out for you in the comments below! I'd love to hear from you!

Recipe