Vanilla-Almond Crescents

I made these with my Oma when we visited them in Germany right after Christmas.  They are a German Christmas cookie.  Everyone loved them, especially my two brothers.  One of them kept stealing them off the plate!

Vanilla-Almond Crescents 
adapted from German Baking Today

250 g/9 oz/2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
pinch baking powder
125 g/4 1/2 oz/5/8 cup sugar
3 drops vanilla essence in 1 tablespoon sugar
3 egg yolks
200 g/7 oz cold butter
125 g/5 oz blanched ground almonds (almond flour)
powdered sugar, for dusting

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 F and line one or two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2.  Mix together the flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl.  Add the rest of dough ingredients and stir with a hand mixer to make a smooth dough.  Don't over mix.  Shape the dough into a ball with your hands.

3.  Roll out the dough into cylinders the thickness of a fat pencil and cut into pieces 5-6 cm/2-2.5 in long.  Then, roll out the ends a little thinner.  Place the crescents on the prepared baking sheets and place into the hot oven.

4.  Remove the crescents from the baking sheet with the parchment paper and put on a rack to cool down.  Sprinkle the powdered sugar onto the cookies while they are still hot.  Let cool.