These Greek Cretan Biscuits are soft, buttery almond cookies made with toasted ground almonds and finished with sliced almonds before baking. They are lightly sweet, crisp around the edges, tender in the center, and especially good with coffee or tea.
A Little Almond Cookie With a Lot Going On
These are the kind of cookies that look simple on the tray and then surprise you once you bite into one.
The outside is lightly golden, the middle stays soft and buttery, and you get almond flavor in two different ways: toasted almonds ground directly into the dough and sliced almonds baked over the top.
That first step—toasting the almonds before grinding them—is absolutely worth the extra few minutes. King Arthur Baking also recommends toasting nuts to deepen their flavor, and gives an oven range of roughly 8–10 minutes around 350°F for almonds depending on size and desired color. King Arthur Baking – How to Toast Nuts.
If you’re building a cookie platter, add my ANZAC Biscuits for a chewy oat-and-coconut option and these Easy Walnut Cookies With Chocolate Chips for another nutty cookie. Both recipes are already live on The Foodie Blog.
For a no-bake almond treat, try my Raffaello Coconut Balls, which have a whole almond hidden inside. And for a classic crowd-pleaser, add The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies to the same dessert tray.
Table of contents
Ingredients for Greek Cretan Biscuits
How to Make Greek Cretan Biscuits
- Toast the almonds. Scatter the blanched almonds on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for (6-10 minutes), shaking the pan once, until very light golden and fragrant. (Note: temp/time are based on standard almond toasting.) Cool completely.
- Grind the almonds. Place cooled toasted almonds in the bowl of a blender or food processor and pulse until they are finely ground (like coarse flour). Don’t over-blend into almond butter.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl.
- While butter and sugar cream, mix the dough. In a large bowl, cream together softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the ground almonds. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined into a soft dough.
- Portion and shape. Spoon into little balls and roll smooth. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, allowing room between cookies.
- Add the topping. Brush the whisked egg white over each ball of dough. Sprinkle with almond flakes (sliced almonds).
- Bake. Bake in a 350°F (175°C) oven until light golden on the bottoms and set on tops, 10 to 14 minutes.
- Serve. Serve warm or completely chilled with a cup of coffee, tea,or milk.
Room Temperature
Cool the cookies completely before storing.
Place them in an airtight container at room temperature.
For the best texture, I would serve them within 4–6 days, although USDA notes that many homemade cookies can remain shelf-stable considerably longer when properly stored; our shorter window here is mainly about maintaining the buttery, fresh-baked texture. USDA – How Should Cookies Be Stored?.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Using warm or melted butter instead of softened butter.
- Overmixing the dough after adding the flour.
- Adding too much flour, which can make the biscuits dry.
- Skipping the toasted almonds, which provide much of the nutty flavor.
- Making the dough balls very different in size, which can cause uneven baking.
- Baking them until they are too dark instead of lightly golden.
- Moving the cookies before they have cooled, which can make them break.
What to Serve With Greek Almond Biscuits
These buttery almond cookies work especially well with:
- Greek coffee
- Espresso
- Cappuccino
- Black coffee
- Mint tea
- Earl Grey
- Cold milk
- Hot chocolate
- Fresh berries
- Vanilla ice cream
For a mixed cookie platter, serve them with ANZAC Biscuits and Chocolate Chip Cookies.
For an almond-and-coconut dessert pairing, add a few Raffaello Coconut Balls to the plate.
FAQs
Yes, but toasting yields a deeper, nuttier flavor. If you omit it, the taste of almond won’t be as strong.
You can, but the flavor is just so superior with freshly toasted-ground almonds. (Half that if you are working with almond flour — which is fine here, and loose enough to work into the dough.)
Butter could have been too warm or the dough was overmixed. If you’d like, chill the dough for 10–15 minutes before baking.
They should look set on top and very lightly golden underneath. They will firm as they cool.
Yes. Cover the dough and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Let it sit at room temp 10–20 minutes to make rolling out the dough easier.
It allows the slivers of almonds to stick and provides a shiny finish, though you can substitute a little milk (the topping won’t adhere as effectively).
More Cookie and Biscuit Recipes
Greek Cretan Biscuits Recipe – Buttery Almond Cookies
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Spread blanched almonds on a baking sheet and toast for 6–10 minutes, shaking once, until lightly golden. Cool completely.
- Pulse toasted almonds in a blender/food processor until finely ground (stop before it turns pasty).
- In a bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat softened butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
- Beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the ground almonds.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix just until a soft dough forms.
- Scoop and roll dough into balls. Place on the lined baking sheet with space between.
- Brush tops lightly with egg white and press on almond flakes/sliced almonds.
- Bake 10–14 minutes until set and lightly golden on the bottom. Cool 5 minutes on the pan, then transfer to a rack.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
- Toasting almonds boosts flavor; cool them fully before grinding to avoid oily almond “butter.”
- If dough feels too soft, chill 10–15 minutes before rolling.
- Spoon and level flour for best texture; too much flour can dry the cookies.
- Almond flakes are typically sold as sliced almonds in US stores.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
