These hazelnut snowball cookies are a crumbly, buttery shortbread cookie that have been rolled in powdered sugar to make them look like little snowballs, for the perfect winter holiday cookie!
Snowball cookies are super easy to make with just a few ingredients and they come together quickly in just one bowl!
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What are Snowball Cookies?
Snowball cookies are round buttery shortbread cookies that are rolled in powdered sugar to resemble little snowballs.
My family has always referred to these classic Christmas cookies as snowball cookies. But some other names you might know these cookies by are:
- Mexican wedding cookies
- Italian wedding cookies
- Polvorones
- Russian tea cakes
- Butterball cookies
Regardless of what you call them, these soft, crumbly, buttery, shortbread cookies are melt-in-your-mouth delicious! They're twice rolled in powdered sugar for a messy (but oh so worth it) treat that can be enjoyed all year long at any occasion. But I just love making them at Christmastime.
These snowball cookies have toasted hazelnuts mixed in, but there are endless variations you can make to suit your hearts desire!
You might also like these chocolate crinkle cookies or these almond shortbread cookies!
Ingredient Notes
You just need a handful of simple ingredients to make these buttery hazelnut snowball cookies!
Toasted Hazelnuts - Roasted, unsalted hazelnuts are best for this recipe! Just make sure they're finely chopped.
Almond Extract - This is optional, but I like adding a little bit of almond extract to really enhance the nutty flavor.
Powdered Sugar - You can't have snowball cookies without an abundance of powdered sugar.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Variations & Substitutions
These snowball cookies are a great base recipe! You can swap out the hazelnuts and almond extract for any of the other flavor combinations below!
Nuts - Instead of hazelnuts you can try, walnuts, pecans, almonds, pistachios, or macadamia nuts! Just make sure any nuts are toasted and finely chopped!
Brown Butter - For even more nutty flavor, I like to substitute the butter for browned butter!
Pumpkin Spice - Add in 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice and ½ cup of chopped toasted pecans.
Peppermint - For peppermint snowball cookies add in ¼ teaspoon of peppermint extract and ¼ cup of crushed candy canes.
Funfetti - Add in ½ cup of rainbow sprinkles!
How to Toast Nuts
Spread whole or roughly chopped nuts into an even layer on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 300°F for 8-10 minutes or until fragrant and just lightly toasted. Remove from the oven and let cool. Then finely chop into small pieces before adding to the cookie dough!
How to Make Snowball Cookies
Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Then add in the vanilla and almond extract and mix until fully combined.
Mix in the flour, finely chopped hazelnuts, and salt until combined. The dough should come together into a dry but soft ball.
Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to portion the dough, roll into small balls.
Chill the shaped cookie dough balls for at least 1 hour before baking.
While the cookies are chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the cookies 1-2 inches apart on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350°F for 15-18 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned and the edges are set.
Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
Then gently roll the still warm cookies in powdered sugar and place on a cooling rack.
Then let the cookies cool completely to room temperature. The powdered sugar will melt and the cookies will get very sticky.
Once the cookies are fully cooled, roll in powdered sugar again.
Serve these hazelnut snowball cookies with a big mug of hot chocolate!
Tips for Perfect Cookies
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, crumbly cookies that don't spread.
Make sure your oven is the proper temperature! Use an oven thermometer to make sure your oven is exactly 350°F. If the oven is too cold, the cookies will spread too much and if it's too hot they centers won't bake all the way through. For example, my oven is about 20 degrees off. So I have to set the oven to 370°F in order to get it to bake at 350°F.
Use a lightweight, light colored baking sheet for best results! Believe it or not, a lighter pan makes the cookies bake more slowly than a dark pan, which helps keep them from spreading too much. My favorite pans for baking cookies are:
You also want to use either parchment paper or silicone mats on your cookie sheet to help keep the cookies from spreading.
Bake the cookies one sheet at a time, on the center rack. This will ensure all your cookies cook evenly and the bottoms don't burn. Then let the cookie sheet cool completely between batches. This ensures the cookies cook evenly and don't spread too much by being put on a hot pan.
Always under-bake the cookies! If you slightly under-bake the cookies (so the centers are still soft when you remove them from the oven), they'll stay soft and chewy for days!
Do the cookie scoot! In order to get perfectly round cookies, use a large cookie cutter to gently scoot them around as soon as they come out of the oven!
Recipe FAQ's
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Chilling the snowball cookie dough allows the flour to hydrate a bit and ensures the butter is super cold. This keeps your cookies from spreading too much and flattening out. It also ensures the shortbread cookies keep their nice round shape!
Yes! The cookie dough balls freeze great! Flash freeze the shaped cookie dough balls on a baking sheet for 1 hour. Then transfer to a ziplock bag and try to squeeze as much air out as possible. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can bake from frozen and add 1-2 minutes to the baking time.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
More Cookie Recipes You Might Like!
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Recipe Card
Hazelnut Snowball Cookies
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Cookies
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup toasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
Topping
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Then add in the vanilla and almond extract and mix until fully combined.
- Mix in the flour, finely chopped hazelnuts, and salt until combined. The dough should come together into a dry but soft ball.
- Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to portion the dough, roll into small balls.
- Chill the shaped cookie dough balls for at least 1 hour before baking.
- While the cookies are chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the cookies 1-2 inches apart on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350°F for 15-18 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned and the edges are set.
- Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
- Then gently roll the still warm cookies in powdered sugar and place on a cooling rack.
- Then let the cookies cool completely to room temperature. The powdered sugar will melt and the cookies will get very sticky.
- Once the cookies are fully cooled, roll in powdered sugar again.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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