Pecan Snowball Cookies: These tender, two bite buttery pecan snowball cookies, rolled in powdered sugar, are a Christmas time favorite made with just 5 ingredients!
First, use a food processor or hand held chopper to chop 1 1/4 cups of pecan halves into finely ground pieces.
Next, in a small bowl, combine 1 3/4 cups flour with the ground pecans and set aside.
Now, in a medium mixing bowl, cream 2 sticks of softened, salted butter and 1/3 cup of powdered sugar with a hand mixer. Beat for 2 minutes until the mixture is fluffy and light yellow. Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to the butter mixture and cream to combine.
Add the flour and nut mixture to the creamed butter and use a wooden spoon to mix the dough by hand until it is combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the dough for 20 minutes.
Now, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Using a cookie scoop, roll each scoop of dough into a ball.
Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet and bake them for about 10 minutes or just until lightly browned on the bottom. The cookies will be light in color so watch them carefully so they are not overbaked. Allow the cookies to cool for about 2 minutes.
Finally, place the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar in a shallow bowl and roll the cookies in the powdered sugar. Place them on a cooling rack to cool completely. Once the cookies have cooled, roll them a second time in the powdered sugar and enjoy!
Notes
You can substitute almonds or walnuts for the pecans in this recipe.
If you are using almonds, you can substitute almond extract for half of the vanilla extract.
If you don't have a cookie scoop, roll about 1 tablespoon of cookie dough into 1-inch balls and place them on the baking sheet.
If you have unsalted butter on hand, you can use it and add 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
If the dough seems a bit dry and does not roll into balls, add 1/2 tablespoon of water until the dough holds together.
Store these pecan snowball cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
To freeze the dough, scoop the cookie dough onto a baking sheet and place the sheet in the freezer until the dough is frozen. Place the dough balls in an airtight container or freezer bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw in the refrigerator and then follow the remainder of the recipe.
To freeze the already baked cookies, allow the cookies to cool but do not roll them in powdered sugar. Place them in an airtight container or freezer bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw in the refrigerator and then roll the cookies in powdered sugar twice.