Vegan Snowball Cookies: The Perfect Party Pastry

I was asking Alisa for suggestions for our December column, and of course Christmas cookies came up. I was surprised to realize that I’ve never written about dairy-free and vegan Snowball Cookies (or Russian Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding Cakes, Italian Wedding Cookies, or Butterballs as they are sometimes called) and that there isn’t a recipe for them on Go Dairy Free, either.

Snowballs are Katherine’s favorite Christmas cookie. No matter how busy December gets, she and Scott always find time to make these cookies.

Last year one of her younger brothers and her younger sister got in on the act, too, so I can say without hesitation that this is a great Kids Can Cook recipe. It’s simple, fun, and vegan, which means I don’t worry if someone sneaks a bite of cookie dough.

Kids can help mix the ingredients, shape the dough, and roll the cookies in the powdered sugar. They can also help clean up the powdered sugar that gets everywhere! Older kids and teens can make the entire recipe themselves.

Special Diet Notes: Vegan Snowball Cookies

By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / n0n-dairy, egg-free, peanut-free, soy-free, vegan, and vegetarian.

Vegan Snowball Cookies

 

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Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

35 mins

 

Author: Katherine and Sarah Hatfield

Serves: 30 to 36 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup dairy-free margarine (non-hydrogenated; we used Smart Balance)
• 1 cup powdered sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans

Instructions

1. Preheat you oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. Put the margarine, ½ cup powdered sugar, and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Beat with a hand mixer until creamed, about 1 minute.
3. Add the flour, salt, and nuts, and mix until combined.
4. Roll the dough into 1 to 1½ inch balls. You can use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to measure, if desired.
5. Place the balls onto your prepared baking sheet. The dough does not spread very much, so the cookies don't have to be spread far apart.
6. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies are golden brown.
7. Put the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar in a bowl, and Immediately roll the warm cookies in the powdered sugar to coat.
8. Once the cookies are cool, roll them in the powdered sugar a second time.
9. Store the cookies in an airtight container, for up to 1 week.

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Key Pantry Ingredients: Vegan Snowball Cookies

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