I LOVE making Christmas cookies and was delighted to add snowball cookies to my repertoire this year! Apparently I’ve been living under a rock, because I didn’t know about snowball cookies, which are also called Mexican Wedding Cookies and Russian Tea Cookies.
Snowball cookies are not usually vegan because they are made with butter, but I used some coconut & RSPO palm oil shortening, and they were perfect! I think the vegan shortening really helped them stick together. We are not vegan, but I am dairy-free.
Snowball cookies are easy to make with small children, and can be completed in half a morning- the perfect time for a project.
We made these twice this season. First we mix the snowball cookie dough, then rolled the dough. While they baked we cleaned up and set up for the next part. While they cooled just a bit we would read a story. Then they were ready to be rolled in powdered sugar!
Our Favorite Advent & Christmas Cookies
We LOVE Christmas cookies in our family! We make cookies from Thanksgiving to Epiphany, pretty much non-stop. My husband prefers sugar cookies, I prefer traditional German Lebkuchen (gingerbread), and I always make Polish Kolaches. We also make pfefferneuse, rum balls, and sometimes even more!
Keeping Advent is very important to me, especially with small children. This year, we enjoyed using the lovely Advent book “Christmas is Coming.” It has an advent calendar on the front with little windows for the children to open, and each day has an activity, recipe, song, or story to enjoy.
Day 8 had a recipe for snowball cookies! The kids were so excited I didn’t have a chance to google for a dairy-free and gluten-free snowball recipe, so I jumped right in and just altered the one in the book.
Luckily it turned out delicious!
Ingredients in Gluten free and Dairy free Snowball Cookies
The ingredients are simple!
- Gluten free flour– be sure to use a blend with xantham gum!
- Confectioner’s sugar- We grab an organic version for holiday baking
- Ground cinnamon– Although after a quick web search I see that most snowball cookie recipes don’t have cinnamon, the one we used did, and I thought it a lovely addition
- Palm shortening- At the holidays, Nutiva’s (responsibly sourced) palm and coconut oil shortening is a staple in my baking cabinet! It is SO sticky, but really holds recipes together well the way butter does, and coconut oil alone does not. It’s so nice to be able to make the snowball cookies without butter. In theory you could use ghee or a grass-fed butter of course!
- Salt- just a half teaspoon for yumminess!
- Ground Walnuts– Although most recipes seem to use ground almonds or pecans, I really liked using walnuts. Walnuts are one of the healthiest nuts, and one of the nuts that are most easy on digestion!
How to Make Vegan Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Snowball Cookies
It’s easy!
First, Set your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit (180 degrees Celsius).
Second, beat together palm shortening, 1/2 cup of the confectioners sugar, the cinnamon, and salt for about two minutes until it is creamy. Then add the flour gradually, and then the ground nuts until just mixed.
It will be a bit crumbly, but hold together when you press it.
Pinch off dough and roll into 1-inch (2.5 centimeter) balls. Place on cookie sheets, spaced apart 1.5 inches or so.
Bake for 10 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly golden and the tops are just set.
Let the cookies cool until they are warm but still firm enough to handle without crumbling.
Roll in confectioners sugar on plate (this is the best part with the kids!). Set them on wire racks to cool. When they are fully cool, roll them again.
Store in an airtight container. They last FOREVER, hahaha. At least a week. Three weeks for us!
Makes about 50 cookies.
How to Store Vegan Snowball Cookies
These cookies store like a gem! I kept them in a cookie tin and the first batch lasted one week until we had eaten them all. The second batch was made amidst many other cookies so lasted longer. We were finishing them 2.5 weeks later and they were still delicious!
Snowball Cookies {Gluten-Free + Dairy-Free + Vegan}
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Electric Mixer
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups gluten free flour use a blend with xantham gum
- 1 cup palm shortening I used Nutiva
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar divided
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup ground walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farhenheit or 180 degrees Celsius.
- With electric mixer on medium speed, beat palm shortening, 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar, cinnamon, and salt for two minutes until smooth and creamy.
- Gradually beat in flour, mixing on low.
- Add nuts until just blended.
- Pinch of pieces of dough and roll between palms to make 1-inch balls. Place on cookie sheets spaced at least 1 inch apart.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until tops are just set and bottoms are just starting to brown.
- Let cool on cookie sheets until the cookies are still warm but firm enough to handle without crumbling. Don't let cool all the way!!
- Spread 1 cup of confectioners' sugar on a plate and roll the balls in them. Set them on a wire cooling sheet to cool. When completely cool, roll them in the confectioners sugar again.
Notes
- Store these snowball holiday cookies in an airtight container for up to one week (although ours lasted for almost three weeks!).
- Don’t let them cool too much before you start rolling! If you do they will get crumbly and be harder to roll, especially for little hands.
- Each cookie only has 1g of sugar, just saying :-).
Nutrition
Anna Rapp has a Masters in Business Administration and another Masters in Public Policy and Administration. But, she quit her cool policy job out of a desire to be home with two miracle children she had after infertility. Now she blogs at To Make a Mommy about fertility and at To Make a Family about green living, healthy recipes, and gentle parenting. She lives in Virginia with her husband and two kids!
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