MY FAVORITE CHRISTMAS COOKIE RECIPE | PECAN SNOWBALLS
Happy holidays!
Last weekend we visited some friends for the weekend and I needed a holiday-inspired hostess gift. So, I decided to bake my favorite Christmas Cookie Recipe, Pecan Snowballs.
They are similar to a shortbread cookie; rich, buttery and delicious! And they are so good it is impossible to eat just one.
So, let me show you how to make them. As pretty and festive as they look, they are super quick and easy to make. Start by preheating your oven to 400º F. Add 4 sticks (2 Cups) cut up, softened butter to the bowl of your standing mixer. Then add 1 cup confectioners’ (powdered) sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract to the bowl as well (not shown).
On low speed, cream the butter and sugar mixture thoroughly.
Next, sift together 4-1/2 cups all purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Add the flour a cup at a time to the creamed butter mixture and beat on low speed until the flour is incorporated.
Finely dice 1-1/2 cups of pecans. I purchase large bags of nuts at Costco where they are much more economical to buy. To keep the nuts fresh I store them in the freezer.
Add the pecans to the cookie dough and mix to combine.
Do not over mix or your cookies will be tough.
Using a 1-1/2″ scoop, scoop uniform amounts of dough onto a lined cookie sheet.
Then, using your hands, form the dough into balls.
Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes in your preheated oven until they are set and just beginning to brown. Actually, the cookie in the photo below is slightly over done, so in this case do as I say, not as I did.
Place a generous amount of confectioner’ sugar in a low-sided bowl. While the cookies are warm, roll them in the sugar. Let the cookies cool and roll them in the sugar again for a nice generous coating. After all, this is what makes them “snowballs”.
Since I was making these cookies as a gift from my kitchen, I lined a tin container (purchased here from the Container Store) with parchment paper. By the way, Costco also sells big fat rolls of parchment paper that is so convenient to have on hand.
I then layered the Pecan Snowballs in the tin, placing a sheet of parchment between each layer.
Just look at that buttery, sweet deliciousness! Don’t you just want to get up and bake some of these right now?
A final piece of parchment went on top before adding the lid and a big festive bow.
I always bake another batch for my family to enjoy too. The recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies, depending on the size of balls formed.
Below is the printable recipe. ENJOY!
- 4 Sticks (2 Cups) Softened Butter, Cut Into Cubes
- 1 Cup Confectioners' (Powdered) Sugar
- 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 4-1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- 1-1/2 Cups Diced Pecans
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Add butter, confectioners' (powdered) sugar and vanilla extract to the bowl of your standing mixer.
- On low speed, thoroughly cream the butter and sugar mixture.
- Sift together flour and salt, then add cup at a time to the creamed butter mixture, beating on low speed until the flour is incorporated.
- Add pecans to the cookie dough and mix to combine
- Using a 1-1/2" scoop, scoop uniform amounts of dough onto a lined cookie sheet.
- Using your hands, form the dough into balls.
- Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes in your preheated oven until they are set and just beginning to brown.
- Place a generous amount of confectioner' sugar in a low-sided bowl.
- While cookies are warm, roll them in the sugar.
- Let cookies cool and roll them in the sugar again for a nice generous coating.
- ENJOY!
So there you have it: MY FAVORITE CHRISTMAS COOKIE RECIPE | PECAN SNOWBALLS
But you know, these cookies aren’t just for Christmas, they are great year round!
Here is some more Christmas inspiration:
Remembering our Troops at Christmas.
Thanks for dropping in! Do please leave a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
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