The Best Snowball Cookies Recipe (2024)

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These easy Snowball Cookies are an old fashioned, buttery shortbread cookie with pecans that are dipped in powdered sugar. They’re an elegant treat to enjoy any time of the year and to add to your Holiday season baking!

Some people know these cookies as Italian wedding cookies, Mexican wedding cookies, and even Russian Tea cookies. I grew up calling Pecan Balls. However you may know them, they are melt-in-your-mouth yumminess that everyone loves.

Pecan balls were one of my Grandma’s specialties and are truly one of my fondest childhood Christmas traditions and are, by far, my favorite cookies. We made these cookies and these Oreo Balls every year and it’s so great creating the same memories with my own children.

The Best Snowball Cookies Recipe (1)

These pecan cookie balls are the best simple and delicious treat that comes together quickly and the dough freezes well. It’s hard to beat cookies shaped like little snowballs right?! They are pure decadence.

Ingredients Needed

Butter – a cup of unsalted butter to give that classic, buttery shortbread flavor

Sugar – just a tad of white sugar gets mixed into the dough

Water – a small amount of water to moisten the dough

Vanilla extract – To give it the cookies flavor

All purpose flour – I have also used Bob’s Red Mill One-to-one flour

Pecans – chopped finely in a food processor or with a hand held chopper

Confectioners’ Sugar – to roll and coat the baked cookies in

Tips and Variations

Make them with no nuts if you’d like.

Used chopped walnuts, almonds, or any type of nut you’d like to use.

Add ⅓ cup of mini chocolate chips if desired.

Add ½ cup cocoa powder for a chocolate version.

Chop nut in a food processor or with a hand held chopper.

Add 1 teaspoon of almond extract in place of 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract if desired.

How to Make These Butter Ball Cookies

Preheat oven to 325 ° F

Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium speed. You can also use your stand mixer with the paddle attachment as well

Add in the water and vanilla extract and mix until combined.

Then add flour and mix on low speed until flour is just mixed in, making sure to scape down the sides of the bowl..

Add the chopped nuts and gently stir to combine.

Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours

Using a cookie scoop, scoop dough into your hand and roll the dough into 1-inch balls and place on an ungreased baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

After baking, transfer to a wire rack and cool for 5-10 minutes.

Place the confectioners’ sugar in a shallow bowl or plastic bag. Roll each baked cookie ball in the powdered sugar while they are still a little warm. Then place them on a sheet of parchment paper .

Roll in the powdered sugar again for a second time after they have completely cooled to generous coat the outside of the cookies.

How to Store?

Store in an airtight container for up to 5-6 days.

Can snowball cookie dough be frozen?

Yes, you can place the cookie dough in a freezer bag and freezer for up to one month. The entire ball of dough can be frozen or roll the cookie balls and then freeze them. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature prior to baking.

Freeze snowball cookies after baking as well. Once they have thawed completely, roll them in powdered sugar again to freshen them up.

The Best Snowball Cookies Recipe (2)

Try these other easy Holiday treats too:

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Easy Peppermint Bark

Raspberry Pecan Pinwheel Cookies

Easy Oreo Balls Recipe

Classic Snickerdoodle Cookies

The Best Snowball Cookies Recipe (3)

Old Fashioned Snowball Cookies

These easy Snowball Cookies are a buttery shortbread cookie with pecans that will literally melt in your mouth

5 from 51 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Chill dough: 2 hours hours

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

Servings: 48

Calories: 81kcal

Author: Sherri Hagymas

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter salted 2 sticks, softened
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoon water optional
  • 2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups all purpose flour sifted
  • 1 cup pecans chopped
  • ½ cup confectioners Sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325 ° F

  • Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and cream with an electric mixer. You can also use a stand mixer.

  • Add in the vanilla extract and water and mix until combined.

  • Then add flour and mix thoroughly.

  • Add the chopped nuts and gently stir to combine.

  • Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours

  • Roll the chilled dough into 1 inch balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.

  • Bake for 20 minutes.

  • After baking, transfer to a wire rack and cool for 5-10 minutes.

  • Then roll in confectioner's sugar.

Notes

Used chopped walnuts, almonds, or any type of nut you’d like to use.

Add ⅓ cup of mini chocolate chips if desired.

Add ½ cup cocoa powder for a chocolate version.

Add 1 teaspoon of almond extract in place of 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract if desired.

Tips:

Chop nuts in a food processor or with a hand held chopper.

Make them with no nuts if you’d like.

Dough is very dense after adding flour.

Keeping the dough cool is important to the cookies staying nice and round.

Place the dough back in the refrigerator between batches.

Nutrition

Serving: 1ball | Calories: 81kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 33mg | Potassium: 16mg | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 120IU | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 0.3mg

Nutritional Disclosure

Nutritional facts are estimates and are provided as a courtesy to the reader. Please utilize your own brand nutritional values to double check against our estimates. Nutritional values are calculated via a third party. Changing ingredients, amounts or cooking technique will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.

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The Best Snowball Cookies Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why are my snowball cookies falling apart after baking? ›

There was probably too much flour added or they were over-baked. Add another tablespoon of butter or a tablespoon of milk. If they are falling apart a few days later, then they were sitting out too long. Keep them in an airtight container to help them last longer.

Why are my snowball cookies spreading? ›

If you found your cookies to spread too much in the oven, there are a host of things that can cause this. Your butter could be too warm. You may have improperly measured the flour or the sugar (use that scoop and level method!). You could have placed the dough balls on a sheet pan that was warm.

What is the secret to chewy cookies? ›

Cornstarch helps product soft and thick cookies. Using more brown sugar than white sugar results in a moister, softer cookie. An extra egg yolk increases chewiness. Rolling the cookie dough balls to be tall and lumpy instead of wide and smooth gives the cookies a bakery-style textured thickness.

Why is my snowball cookie dough crumbly? ›

Overmixing the dough

If you overmix the dough, the cookies will be dry and crumbly. The best way to fix this is to add more liquid to the dough. This can be done by adding milk, water, or even melted butter. You may also need to add more flour to the dough if it is too wet.

Why are my snowball cookies flat in the oven? ›

Snowball cookies flatten if the dough was not chilled before baking or if the oven temperature was too low.

How long to chill cookie dough before baking? ›

Scooping then chilling your cookie dough for at least. 2 hours before baking. As you can see, this primarily affects spread and height, both of which significantly contribute to texture.

What makes cookies taste the best? ›

When you think cookies, you likely think of sweet ingredients, but salt is essential. It balances the flavor of caramelized sugars. We even love sprinkling a little extra flake salt on our cookies to awaken the tongue and complement the sweetness.

What brings out the flavor in cookies? ›

Add Spices To Your Dough

Spices can add an amazing aroma and flavor to your cookies. I use spices like cinnamon, ginger, and cloves to bring out the flavor in many recipes.

Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted butter? ›

Adjust Salt

Next, if you're swapping unsalted for salted butter, reduce the amount of salt listed in the recipe to adjust for the salt in the butter. Take ¼ teaspoon of salt away for every stick of butter used*. Do the opposite if you're swapping salted for unsalted butter.

Where did snowball cookies come from? ›

The origin for pecan snowball cookies is unknown. Beloved in many parts of the world, these cookies may have traveled to the U.S. by way of immigrants from Eastern Europe or Mexico. Since the 20th century, they've become part of traditional American offerings for weddings and holidays, including Christmas and Easter.

Can you freeze snowballs? ›

You can store snowball cookies in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days. I suggest storing each in mini cupcake liners so that they don't smudge into each other. Can you freeze snowball cookies? Yes, snowball cookies freeze beautifully.

Should I use baking soda or baking powder in cookies? ›

Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.

Is it OK to use melted butter instead of softened? ›

Softened butter and melted butter are not the same. Using melted butter will change the texture of whatever you're baking. If you only want the butter to soften for spreading, microwave it on the Defrost setting (30%) in 5-second increments until it's softened as desired.

Why are my cookies falling apart after baking? ›

Too much flour: If you add too much flour to your cookie dough, it will be dry and crumbly. Make sure to measure your flour correctly using a kitchen scale or by spooning it into your measuring cup and then leveling it off. Not enough fat: Fat helps to bind the ingredients together and make cookies chewy.

How do you keep cookie dough from falling apart? ›

Dry – “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process. This can be reversed by adding one to two tablespoons of liquid (water, milk or softened butter) to your mix.

Why are my cookies splitting? ›

The cracks in crinkle cookies or molasses cookies occur when the top of the cookie dries out before the interior has set. The means that as the cookie expands, it starts to crack the dry surface.

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