Buttery Pecan Snowball Cookies (Melt-in-Your-Mouth!) ❄️🥜
✨ These Buttery Pecan Snowball Cookies (also known as Mexican Wedding Cookies) are a classic holiday essential. They feature a tender, crumbly shortbread texture packed with toasted pecans for a rich nutty crunch. Rolled twice in powdered sugar, they look like festive little snowballs and dissolve instantly on your tongue!
Ingredients:
1 cup (227g) Unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (60g) Powdered sugar (plus 1 cup extra for coating)
1 tsp Vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups (280g) All-purpose flour
½ tsp Salt
¾ cup Finely chopped pecans (toast them lightly for extra flavor!)
Steps:
Cream the Base: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, ½ cup powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy.
Make the Dough: Whisk the flour and salt together, then gradually mix into the butter mixture until a soft dough forms.
Add Nuts: Gently fold in the finely chopped pecans until evenly distributed.
Chill: Cover the dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes. This prevents the cookies from spreading too much in the oven.
Roll & Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough and roll them smooth. Place 1 inch apart on a baking sheet. Bake for 10–12 minutes until the bottoms are barely golden.
The First Roll: Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes. While still warm (but not hot), gently roll them in the extra powdered sugar. The heat will melt the sugar slightly to create a sticky base.
The Second Roll: Let the cookies cool completely on a wire rack. Roll them in the powdered sugar a second time for a fluffy, snowy white finish.