Snowballs, Russian Tea Balls, Swedish Tea Balls, or Mexican Wedding Cookies, by any of these names- Delicious!

Swedish Tea Balls

Also called Mexican Wedding Cookies, Russian Tea Balls, or Snowballs

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This is my husband's great-grandmother's recipe and a favorite at Christmas and showers.
Makes 32 cookies

1 cup butter softened
1/3 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups of flour
1 1/2 cups of finely chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 cup of powdered sugar to roll baked cookies in after baking

Preheat oven to 350°

Measure flour and salt into a bowl. Place walnuts into a food processor and pulse until they are in very small pieces. Take care not to over process into paste.

Add nuts to dry ingredients and stir to blend.
Cream together the butter and powdered sugar, on medium high speed, until light and fluffy.
Add vanilla and beat until incorporated.

Reduce mixer speed to low and add the flour into the butter mixture in 3 batches,
mixing each addition until just combined and scraping down sides.

If batter does not hold together add water 1 Tbs at a time until dough
holds together when rolled into a ball. Do not over beat as that will make them tough.

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart on an un-greased cookie sheet or onto parchment paper. They don't spread but do get larger as they bake.


Bake for 10-12 minutes until cookies are set and just golden brown on the bottom.
Remove from cookies from oven and immediately roll cookies into the powdered sugar until coated on all sides.


Place cookies onto a sheet of waxed paper to cool.
Store in an airtight container for up to a week at room temperature, 2 weeks in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.