Viennese Crescents

Yield: 4 dozen 2 1/4-inch cookies
Source: Joy of Cooking Christmas Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 c unsalated butter
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 c ground walnuts or ground blanched almonds
• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup powder sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease cookie sheets
2. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and creamy.
3. Beat well and add vanilla and ground walnuts/almonds.
4. Sift flour over the butter mixture, gradually stir in the flour, then knead until well blended.
5. Pull off generous 1-tablespoon pieces of dough and shape into crscents. If the dough is soft and ard to handle, refrigerate until firmed slightly.
6. Bake 1 sheet at a time in the upper third of the oven for 13 to 16 minutes, ot until the crescents are lightly tinged with brown and barely darer at the edges.
7. Transfer sheets tp wire racks and let the cookies firm up slightly, about 2 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool thoroughly.
8. Sift over powdered suger, until evenly coated.