Cashew Snowball Cookies
Cashew Snowball Cookies are irresistibly buttery and nutty, with a light, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Packed with chopped cashews and flavored with ground cardamom, these cashew cookies add an exquisite addition to any Christmas cookie tray. Plus, they're egg-free!
Servings 20 Cookies
Calories 96kcal
Ingredients
- ½ cup cashew nuts
- 1 cup all purpose flour (126 grams)
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom or more if you love cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick unsalted butter (115 grams or ½ cup) room temperature
- 1 cup confectioners sugar (120 grams) divided
Instructions
- Pre heat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Chop the cashews - You can finely chop the cashews with a large knife or pulse them briefly in a food processor. Just be sure not to grind them into a fine powder—some texture is key. If the pieces are too large, the cookies may fall apart when rolling.
- Add the chopped cashew nuts, all purpose flour, ground cardamom and salt into a medium bowl and stir to combine well. Set aside.
- Add butter, ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons confectioners sugar, into a large bowl and beat with an electric beater for about 3 to 4 minutes or light and fluffy.
- Add the combined dry ingredients and continue mixing, until the dough comes together. Pro tip: The dough can be ready to roll immediately, or may need some chilling depending on the softness of the butter. If the dough feels soft, refrigerate it for about 30 minutes. If it’s firm and doesn’t stick to your hands, you can roll it right away.
- Roll about 1 tablespoon of measure dough into a smooth ball and place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing about an inch apart.
- Bake cookies until deep golden brown on the bottom edges but barely brown on top, about 15 to 19 minutes. Place baking pan on a wire rack and cool completely.
- Place the remaining confectioners' sugar in a shallow bowl and gently roll the cookies a few times to coat them evenly on all sides. Then, arrange them on a plate.Tip: If they're not fully coated, roll them again! You can also sift a little extra sugar over the cookies after rolling for an even more polished finish.
Notes
To make cardamom powder, grind about ¼ cup green cardamoms to a fine powder in a dry grinder and measure as needed for the recipe. I usually grind much more than that and store cardamom powder in a sealed zip lock bag and place in the freezer. This stays fresh for months.
Confectioner's sugar is the same as powdered sugar found in grocery stores.
Use a 1-inch cookie scoop to easily make uniform cookies.
Increase the ground cardamom if you love the flavor.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 96kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 12mg | Sodium: 30mg | Potassium: 31mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 141IU | Vitamin C: 0.05mg | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 1mg