Koulourakia (Greek Butter Cookies)

If you are going to make these cookies, I highly recommend looking at the related blog post; I put as many details as I could about making these cookies. This recipe is labeled “difficult” because of the rolling and twisting. If you choose to make drop cookies, this recipe is no more difficult than any other drop cookie recipe.

Before we begin, there are a few provisos about making koulourakia. I’m not going to lie: these cookies are time-consuming if you make them the traditional way, rolling and shaping them as opposed to just scooping them and dropping them into small rounds. To me, the extra time is worth it, but it is a labor of love to the tune of about 5 hours.

If you decide that you just want to scoop and drop cookies, it will go a lot faster. I’ll give some ballpark baking times at the bottom. They are just as tasty round. Using the dough measurements I give, this recipe will yield about 15 dozen cookies twisted or 7 1/2 dozen dropped. It is an incredibly high yield recipe that would be a great choice for a cookie exchange as well.

About the twisting: the dough is dry out of necessity. It is important for the final cookie consistency but it can make rolling a challenge, especially since you roll it to a log of about 3/8″ thickness—pretty thin, actually. The dough can and will crack and break as you roll it occasionally. Sometimes you can just pinch it back together, sometimes you need to re-roll it. And sometimes you just toss it back into the bowl and try again. I try to be as explicit as I can be with the instructions for rolling and baking in my blog. Don’t misunderstand me, I don’t want to discourage you from making them. They are a fabulous cookie! I just want you to be prepared if you choose to make them the traditional shape (and again, you can always just scoop out the dough and bake it into rounds).

They should be golden brown when they come out—how brown is a matter for your personal preference. My aunt and I like them overdone because we feel it enhances the vanilla flavor but my mom prefers them lighter, so don’t be afraid to experiment with different baking times. After all, you will have 15 dozen!

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
3. Add in eggs and vanilla and beat well to combine.
4. Combine all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and soda) in a separate bowl.
5. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet, mixing thoroughly.
6. Using the #60 scoop, scoop out dough. Either roll out, cut and twist dough as desired (see blog text); or drop dough directly onto parchment-lined cookie sheets for round butter cookies.
7. Brush with beaten egg.
8. Bake 10-15 minutes (depends on shape). Remove when golden brown. Let cool on the sheet for 1 minute before removing to racks.