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Snowballs

3/22/2020

12 Comments

 
Picture
Making snowball cookies helps keeps my worries at bay.

​And, now that the COVID-19 panademic is causing millions around the world to quarantine or shelter in place, with a major economic depression a likely consequence,  high anxiety has quickly become our new normal.
 
But there’s also a corner of joy in my teal and white kitchen, where there’s butter, sugar, flour and cookie sheets.
 
Because snowball cookies usually make an appearance around Christmas, folks forget that they can be made all year long.  
Thought to originate in England during the Middle Ages, these two or three-bite treats are also known as Mexican or Greek wedding cookies; butterballs, or powdered sugar balls.  My version calls them honey sand balls since honey is added.  But each share this: there are only a handful of ingredients, and once the dough is put together, the cookies can hit the oven quickly since the dough needs no refrigeration.
 
When snowballs aren’t part of a frenzied holiday ritual, making these cookies provides a comforting rhythm.  
 
Cream together softened butter (always use the real, good stuff) with a bit of powdered sugar, then add flour, vanilla (also use real) and a touch of salt. Lastly, mix in your favorite nuts (walnuts or pecans or hazelnuts work).  I get about
a dozen balls per sheet because even though the recipe has no baking powder or soda, the balls flatten and expand
while baking.  
 
Then comes the very best part (except for the eating): use your (very clean) hands to roll one buttery treat at a time into a one-inch or so sized ball.  Just as studies have shown that gardening in dirt may help ease depression, I think it’s also true when it comes to immersing our hands in cookie dough.   
 
You also can’t fret about anything while making snowballs. 
 
This is because you have to single mindedly be on top of the timing.   
 
Snowballs, you see, are fragile, and even in an oven set at a low 325 degrees, these cookies will burn unless carefully monitored.  Although my recipe calls for 14 minutes, I check the cookies at about 11, and usually find them done with just a tinge of very light browning around the edges.  I’ll take the sheet out and let it sit for only a minute on a wire rack.  Then, with my (very clean) hands, I gently take each ball and roll it in powdered sugar.  After all the balls are done, I roll them in powdered sugar a second time.  A third time won't hurt.  The important point of the sugar assemblage is to do the rolling as soon as possible, because the sugar only sticks when the cookies are hot.    
 
Snowballs are also pretty, so I display them in a glass domed cake stand.  They’ll stay fresh for more than a week this way, but they freeze well, too. When ready to eat one of the latter, just pop it in the microwave for about 10 seconds.  And, since these treats are much lighter than chocolate chip or heavily iced cookies, one or two make a perfect bedtime snack with tea or milk.
 
In the end, though, it doesn’t make any difference how or when you eat snowballs. 
 
Because no matter what, your taste buds will do a happy dance.
 
Honey Sand Balls
 
1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter
½ cup sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ chopped walnuts (or pecans or hazelnuts
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
More powdered sugar for the last step
 
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
 
In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sifted powdered sugar, then add the honey.  Mix until blended.
 
Beat or stir in the flour, nuts, vanilla and salt.  Mix thoroughly, and if you’d like, use your (very clean) hands.
 
Shape the dough into 1-inch balls, places about 1 ½ inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. 
 
Bake for about 14 minutes, but check at about 11 minutes to see if the cookies are done.  They should be very lightly browned around the edges.
 
While the cookies are still warm, roll them gently in powdered sugar, then roll again.  Roll a third time for them to be extra powdery.
 
Makes about 35 cookies.

12 Comments
Jerry Lazar
3/22/2020 02:32:47 pm

My mom made these when we were kids... but called them Russian Tea Cakes... Glad to see they have many names from many cultures... Endemic!...

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Hilary
3/22/2020 02:46:53 pm

My mom made them, too, but only at Christmastime. :)

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Kerri
3/22/2020 03:11:56 pm

I cannot wait to make these. I love this story, especially the part about comparing it to gardening. What great advice! I can’t wait to cook during this plaguecation.

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Hilary
3/22/2020 04:09:26 pm

Yes! I love so many things about this recipe. One, they're easy to make. Two, because they take so little time to make, you can eat them right away. Three, the physical act of making them just feels GOOD for the spirit, especially right now. :) xo

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leslie spoon
3/22/2020 05:07:49 pm

Hilary I am glad that you are having fun making them.

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Hilary
3/22/2020 05:30:34 pm

Yes, me, too! :)

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Jenny Nyffeler link
3/23/2020 09:31:33 am

Hilary, I can almost taste them because of how well you describe the process of making them! :)

Oh, I tHiNk I remember you painting your kitchen teal when you lived in Hollywood... or something like that?? :) Teal is in my mind anyway... hmmm.. :)

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Hilary
3/23/2020 06:53:45 pm

They are one of my favorite cookies to make! And, sorta/kinda right about my kitchen... it was green and white. I would describe the teal that I have now as a darker shade of turquoise. I like it a lot more! Stay safe, Jenny! :)

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Larry Grant
3/24/2020 04:11:07 pm

I do love cookies. I especially like these. My mom, as others have shared, only made them at Christmas time. She called them butterballs. Don't tell the Turkey folks.

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Hilary
3/24/2020 09:21:23 pm

I wonder if the different names of the same cookie has to do with what part of the United States you're from? Whatever the name is, they are so darn good! :)

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Susan Stewart
3/27/2020 02:08:10 pm

What fun that was for me, a longtime cook / sometime baker, to read! My mouth began watering at the second rolling. I'd probably add lemon since I'm such a lemon freak. Nicely done and thanks for the distraction. I needed that little corner of joy.

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Hilary
3/27/2020 10:16:30 pm

You're welcome! I started writing this blog before the orders of social distancing came down, and I wrote about different worries that seem much smaller now... YES, a little lemon juice would definitely give a different flavor profile, and be quite good as well. I think using almond extract instead of vanilla extract is another idea to try. xo

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    Hilary Roberts Grant

    Journalist, editor, filmmaker, foodie--and a clown! 
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