Czech Christmas wouldn’t be complete without vanilla crescent cookies. They are the first type of Christmas cookies that disappears from the table! In Czech, we call them vanilkové rohlíčky.
What Are Vanilkove rohlicky
Czech Vanilkove rohlicky crescents belong to the typical Christmas cookies. The base comprises a buttery dough with ground nuts. The pieces of dough are shaped into a crescent shape and baked in the oven. While the crescents are still warm, you need to coat them with vanilla sugar.
Taste vanilla crescents and other classic Christmas treats in Prague during Advent! Prague, with its magical atmosphere, belongs to the best Christmas destinations in Europe.
MY TIP: Try also these Linzer cookies (a must at Czech Christmas!)
Pronunciation
Do you want to know how to pronounce “vanilkové rohlíčky”? I recorded a short audio clip with the Czech pronunciation. Here you go:
Ingredients
To make vanilla crescents, you need:
- All-purpose flour
- Unsalted butter; take the butter out of the fridge about half an hour in advance
- Coarse sugar
- Walnuts; shelled
- Egg yolk; the egg yolk will make the dough stick together well, and the crescents will shape nicely
HOMEMADE VANILLA SUGAR:
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla bean
- Airtight container; with screw cap
✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.
Instructions with Photos
STEP 1: Grate the walnuts and put them in a bowl.
STEP 2: Add the flour, egg yolk, sugar and butter cut into pieces.
STEP 3: Work into a smooth dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and put it in the fridge to rest for an hour.
STEP 4: Divide the dough into four pieces, roll each into a strand about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Cut the strand into small, equal-sized pieces.
STEP 5: Roll the pieces of dough into crescent shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
STEP 6: Bake in a preheated oven at 340 °f (170 °C) for 12 minutes.
STEP 7: Roll the crescents while still warm in vanilla sugar.
Homemade Vanilla Sugar
These Christmas crescent cookies are rolled in icing sugar scented with vanilla.
I prepare my homemade vanilla sugar by pouring powdered sugar into a large container with a screw cap and placing a vanilla bean inside. I cap the container and shake it. In about three days, the sugar is beautifully scented and ready to use.
TIP: Keep adding sugar to the container, do not remove the vanilla pod.
Silicone Mold for Crescents
If you want to make baking easier, get a silicone mold with crescent shapes to press the dough in. You put the mold with the dough to bake, turn out the slightly cooled rolls and roll them in icing sugar.
Useful Tips
- I grate the walnuts using a manual rotary grinder with a blade for cheese.
- Let the crescents cool for a few minutes after baking. Then remove cookies from the baking sheet and coat them with vanilla sugar while they are still warm.
- Be careful when coating, the rolls are fragile!
GOOD TO KNOW: The vanilla crescent cookies taste best about ten days after baking. During this time, they soften and become tender. Count on it if you are planning to put the cookies on the Christmas table!
Storage
Store the vanilkove rohlicky in a resealable container; a sturdy cardboard box or metal box with a lid is suitable. The crescent cookies should be kept cool and dry. You can put them on the balcony, in the pantry, or on top of the fridge.
Read also: Czech Christmas Folk Traditions
More Christmas cookies:
- Vosi hnizda – beehive nests
- Masaryk’s cookies
- Coconut meringue cookies – kokosky
Recipe Card
Vanilla Crescent Cookies – Czech Vanilkové rohlíčky
Ingredients
- 2 cups (260 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 and ½ stick (170 g) unsalted butter
- ¼ cup (50 g) coarse sugar
- 1 cup (100 g) walnuts (shelled)
- 1 egg yolk
Homemade Vanilla Sugar:
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
- 1 vanilla bean
Instructions
- Grate the walnuts and put them in a bowl.
- Add the flour, egg yolk, sugar and butter cut into pieces.
- Work into a smooth dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and put it in the fridge to rest for an hour.
- Divide the dough into four pieces, roll each into a strand about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Cut the strand into small, equal-sized pieces.
- Roll the pieces of dough into crescent shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 340 °f (170 °C) for 12 minutes.
- Roll the crescents while still warm in vanilla sugar.
Vanilla Sugar:
- Pour powdered sugar into a large container with a screw cap and place a vanilla bean inside. Close the container and shake it. In about three days, the sugar is beautifully scented and ready to use.
Notes
- I grate the walnuts using a manual rotary grinder with a fine shredding blade.
- Let the crescents cool for a few minutes after baking. Then remove cookies from the baking sheet and coat them with vanilla sugar while they are still warm.
- Be careful when coating, the rolls are fragile!
- To make baking easier, get a silicone mold with crescent shapes to press the dough in.
- The vanilla crescent cookies taste best about ten days after baking. During this time, they soften and become tender. Count on it if you are planning to put the cookies on the Christmas table.
DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:
Conversion chart
Louise K.
Thank you for taking the time to post this. I'm going to try these!
I plan on visiting Prague next year on a tour, and am always interested in the food of places I visit.
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Louise, thank you for your kind comment! Give these vanilla rolls a try; they are great and easy to make. Prague is a beautiful city, and you will be thrilled, I guarantee! 🙂
Dagmar Berger
Sounds very tasty. It would be useful to know the temperature of fan oven.
Thanks.
Dasha
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Dasha, thank you for your kind comment! Regarding your point, I am happy to add that the appropriate temperature for a fan-forced oven is 320 °F (160 °C). The rule of thumb in the Czech Republic (and probably in other countries as well) is that the temperature in a fan oven should be about 10-15 °C lower than when baking in a conventional oven with top and bottom heating. I hope this helps! With warm greetings from Bohemia, Petra
Elaine
I fell in love with these cookies when visiting my Czech family in Bohemia (they made all the best recipes for my visit)! You mentioned a mold to help make the crescents all the same size. Where can I buy this/order it (I’m in the US). I have a problem with getting my cookies to be the correct size!!!
Petra Kupská
No wonder your Czech family baked these vanilla crescents for you 🙂 The rohlicky rolls are one of the classic Czech sweets prepared for Christmas. As for the silicone mold for the vanilla crescents, try this one (link to Amazon.com). Otherwise, it is not a requirement to have one crescent like another, made at home and with love, they taste the best! Krásné Vánoce ????
Peter Vanicek
Ahoj Petro,
My mother(who is from Podebrady) would make these every Christmas and it is my favorite Christmas cukrovy. Thank you for your website-I love Czech food and can't wait to try out several more recipes.
Vesele vanoce Vam a Vase rodine.
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Peter, thanks a lot for your lovely comment! Podebrady is a beautiful spa town along the Labe River, I have been there several times, and it is a wonderful place. Otherwise, you're right, these vanilla crescents (vanilkove rohlicky) are one of the Czech classics, and your maminka knew it well 🙂 Krásné Vánoce také Vám!
Melissa
Ahoj Petra, I am making these for my Czech family, my grandma was born in Brne, is it OK for the dough to be in the fridge overnight?
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Melissa, the dough can stay in the fridge for up to a week without any problems. Fingers crossed the rohlicky crescents are a hit! 🙂 Merry Christmas and veselé Vánoce!
Melissa
They were excellent, Petra! A big hit with the family. I ended up substituting ground almonds for walnuts - they were not quite as authentic, but we were able to avoid some nut allergies this way :). Happy new year!
Petra Kupská
I am so happy to hear this! 🙂 and thank you for your nice feedback. Ground almonds are fine, I also use them when I run out of walnuts, so no stress 🙂 Happy new year to you and your family, too!
TJ
Tasty dough, but when I baked my cookies, the dough spread out and looked like oblong blobs and were very thin, maybe 4 mm, nothing like the form of the cookies in the picture. I tried putting the cookies back into the fridge for a while before baking but when after they were formed and put on the baking sheet. Any suggestions?
Petra Kupská
Thank you for your comment. I'm sorry that the rohlicky crescents lost their shape while baking. I double-checked the recipe, quantity of each ingredient, instructions and everything should be fine.
Here are the possible reasons why that happened:
- Often the cause is in the butter. I use European butter, which contains at least 82% fat. Less fatty butter or margarine is less suitable.
- The oven you put the cookies in must be preheated. In this case, to 340 °F (170 °C).
- Always use high gluten flour.
Hope this helps!
TJ
Your suggestion worked! With the high-fat butter and high-gluten flour, the cookies kept their form while baking. And they were very tasty.
Petra Kupská
I am very happy to hear this! Thank you for letting me know 🙂
David Vize
I used to live in Vienna and my ex Czech girlfriend used to bake them for Christmas. These taste exactly like hers. And they are delicious. My kids love them! Thanks for posting
Petra Kupská
Thanks a lot for your comment! I think every Czech girl or woman knows how to bake these rohlíčky rolls. I am glad you and your family like these crescents! 🙂