Snowball Cookies

This type of cookie has so many different names. Whether you know them as Snowball cookies, Russian Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding cookies, Crack cookies, etc. it doesn't matter! It's just a darn good cookie.
We haven't had a lot of snow this winter, so we have had to make alternatives to snow to remind us that it's winter. Whether it's having a white pom pom snowball fight in the house or making these cookies, we like to keep the idea of snow alive right now.
This cookie recipe became one of our favorite Christmas/Winter traditions a few years ago. I had never had one of these types of cookies before until I went to my sisters house one year for Christmas and they had these marvelous little bits of heaven waiting for us on the counter. I immediately asked for the recipe and have had it every winter since then in my own home. (Thanx sister!)
last year for Christmas. Pretty sure I ended up eating more then half of the batch that they had made.
The cookies are filled with pecans, rolled to perfection, and dusted heavily with powdered sugar!




1 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 1/4 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. finely chopped pecans
powdered sugar for rolling

1- Heat your oven to 400.

2- In your stand mixer, combine the softened butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extract. Mix with paddle attachment until mixture is light and fluffy.

3- Add the flour and salt and beat at low speed until a soft dough forms.

4- Add finely chopped pecans and mix just until incorporated.

5- Shape dough into 1 inch balls. To make this easy I use a cookie scoop and then round it off in my hands.

6- Place balls onto sprayed or lined cookie sheet 1 inch apart and bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

7- Immediately roll cookies in powdered sugar when you remove them from the over.

8- Let them cool slightly and roll them again in the powdered sugar. If you like them really coated, roll them again when cookies are completely cooled.

**Randi's Side Notes**
~ Just make sure you are careful when handling these cookies right out of the oven! They will be hot! But rolling them right after you pull them out is a very necessary step.