Pecan Snowball Cookies

One cookie cut in half sitting on a wire cooling rack

Pecan Snowball Cookies are classic Christmas cookies that always look good on cookie tray or at cookie exchanges over the holiday season. A shortbread cookie filled with crushed pecans, and then coated in powdered sugar to look like snowballs.

Course Christmas, Cookies

Cuisine American

Keyword pecan snowball cookies

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Chill Time 30

Total Time 1

Servings

Calories 160kcal

Author Jessica - Together as Family

Equipment

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) butter room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar divided
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt (I use sea salt)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line a baking sheet(s) with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer or a stand mixer, cream butter and 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar until light and fluffy; about 1-2 minutes.
Mix in the vanilla extract and salt and blend just until incorporated.
Add in the flour and chopped pecans and starting on low speed, increase speed as needed, blend together until a dough is formed.
^{*At first it will look really dry and crumbly, but it's important to keep blending it until a dough forms together that you can pinch together.}
Use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop the dough out and place it onto the prepared cookie sheet, leaving about an inch between each cookie (the cookies won't spread much at all).
Place the baking sheet of cookies in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill the dough.
Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the warm baking sheet, at room temperature, for about 10 minutes or until you can safely handle them.
Add the remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar into a bowl. Toss the cookies into the powdered sugar to coat all sides of each cookie well. Enjoy!
^{*Enjoy these cooled to room temperature or eat them slightly warm after they have been coated in powdered sugar (I like them this way).}

Notes

Vanilla Extract : To up the almond flavor try using almond extract or use half vanilla extract + half almond extract (1 teaspoon of each, or do less almond and more vanilla). Lots of different ways to do it if you wanted to.
All-Purpose Flour : I use unbleached all-purpose flour. You can use a 1 to 1 gluten-free flour option, but make sure you increase the butter by 2 tablespoons if using gluten-free flour. So use 1 cup butter + 2 tablespoons butter.
Salt : I prefer using sea salt or kosher salt, but sea salt is preferred because of its finer texture and size.
Pecans : I chop the pecans up very finely as I think that gives the best texture. You don't really want larger chunks of pecans in these delicate cookies, or if you prefer the larger pieces of pecans then roughly chop the pecans; it just depends on preference.

Nutrition