Cinnamon Snowball Cookies are buttery, tender, and perfect for the holidays–but I crave them all year long! With just 7 ingredients and less than 30 minutes to make, they’re simple, easy, and fast to make. They freeze beautifully, too.
Snowball cookies are a must during the holidays! They’re a classic cookie for a reason–they’re so sweet, buttery, and just melt-in-your-mouth delicious!
I love a classic snowball cookie, but I like to level up my snowballs, adding chopped pecans to the cookie batter and ground cinnamon to the sugary coating. The result? Cinnamon pecan snowball cookies with the most cozy, warming, seasonal flavors. These cinnamon snowballs are best snowball cookies I’ve tried!
Why I LOVE this recipe!
- Family favorite – For my family, the holidays wouldn’t be complete without cinnamon snowball cookies!
- Simple and easy – We’re talking just seven ingredients and only 20 minutes to make.
- Perfect freezer cookie – Making and freezing cookies ahead of time is key to epic holiday cookie platters without the stress! I love to both freeze the batter in balls for easy baking or freeze them after baking so I can just pull them out and plate them.
What are Snowball Cookies
You’ve probably had snowball cookies before. They’re those round, buttery, powdered-sugar-covered gems found on many holiday cookie plates every winter. And they’re amazing!
They’re an interesting cookie to make because they don’t have any eggs or leavening agents (like baking soda or baking powder). The result is a wonderfully dense, melt-in-your-mouth cookie.
Snowball cookies are also sometimes called Russian Tea Cakes, Wedding Cakes, Pecan Sandies, or Butterballs.
Recipe Notes
This Cinnamon Snowball Cookies recipe is as simple as promised! Just seven ingredients and 20 minutes for a family friendly treat.
In this section I am going to go through a few tips and tricks I use when making this recipe to get the absolute best and most delicious results.
Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the FULL recipe card.
Ingredients + Substitutions
For the snowball cookies:
- Butter – You’ll want to make sure your butter sits out for a few hours at room temperature before getting started, so that it is soft enough to mix.
- Powdered sugar – Instead of granulated sugar, snowball cookies use powdered sugar (also known as confectioner’s sugar).
- Vanilla extract – Pure vanilla extract adds a nice sweet note of flavor.
- Flour – All-purpose flour is the best for cinnamon snowball cookies, giving you an ultra-tender cookie.
- Pecans – These nuts add perfect flavor and texture to cinnamon snowball cookies. You’ll want to chop them very finely.
- Salt – To enhance the flavors and tamper down the sweetness a bit.
For the cinnamon sugar coating:
- Powdered sugar – The classic snowball cookie coating!
- Cinnamon – Ground cinnamon adds a warm note of flavor to these cinnamon pecan snowball cookies.
Cinnamon Snowball Cookies Step by Step
Add the butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla to a medium-size mixing bowl.
Beat together until light and fluffy.
Add the flour, pecans, and salt.
Mix until combined.
Form the dough into balls and place on your baking sheet one-inch apart. Bake.
Add the powdered sugar and cinnamon to a small bowl for the cinnamon-sugar coating.
Mix together until well combined and pour into a zip-top bag or large container.
After the cookies have cooled for a few minutes, toss them with the powered sugar mixture.
Recipe Tips
- Start with softened butter – Room temperature butter is a must, or the butter will not cream together with your sugar like it should.
- Don’t over-mix the dough – Stop mixing just when everything becomes incorporated. The dough will be pretty crumbly, but it will come together when you press it into balls.
- Bake just until lightly golden brown – Double-check by gently using a spatula to lift one of the cookies on the baking sheet. If it’s light golden brown on the bottom, it’s done!
- Don’t wait too long to add the coating – About 5 minutes cooling time is all you need before adding the cinnamon sugar coating. If you wait much longer, it won’t adhere nearly as well.
Recipe Short Cuts
If you need to make this recipe, but are extra short on time, here are a few ideas that can help make this recipe even faster!
- Make them ahead and freeze them– You can freeze the cookie dough balls until you’re ready to bake them, or you can freeze them already baked. Either way, it’s SO worth it! See full directions for freezing in the “How to Freeze Cookies” section.
- Buy pre-chopped nuts– Grab the nuts already chopped in the baking section of your grocery store.
- Soften your butter fast– Did you forget to soften your butter before getting started making cinnamon snowball cookies? (Been there!) To quickly soften your butter, place the unwrapped sticks in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at 50% power in 10-second increments JUST until soft but not melted. You can also place hot water in a drinking glass for 5 minutes, then invert the drinking glass over the sticks of butter for about 10 minutes.
Recipe Variations
If you love this recipe as much as we do and want some quick ways to change it up for variety, these little tips will do the trick!
- Chocolate Snowball Cookies– Reduce the flour to 1 3/4 cups and add 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder for a chocolate version.
- Cinnamon Snowball Cookies (No Nuts)– Simply leave out the nuts for a nut-free version of these cinnamon snowball cookies.
- Cinnamon Walnut Snowball Cookies– Swap in chopped walnuts for the pecans to make a walnut version of cinnamon snowballs.
How to Freeze Cookies
Cookies can be frozen before or after baking. If freezing the cookie dough you are able to just pop out a few or as many as you need to bake to have hot, fresh cookies on demand.
If you prefer, you can bake all of the cookies and freeze after baking. Freezing the baked cookies will preserve them and once, thawed they come out just as soft, chewy, fresh, and perfect as they are when freshly baked.
Both are great options for keeping cookies fresh and delicious!
To freeze cookie dough:
- Line up balls of cookie dough on your baking sheet. Don’t worry about spacing.
- Transfer the cookie dough balls to the freezer and freeze completely.
- Remove the cookie dough from the sheet and place them in an airtight, freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Label them (I like to add the name of the cookie, the date, and how long/what temp to bake them at for easy reference) and place them back in the freezer for up to a month.
- When you want to bake your cookies, place them on a baking sheet about an inch apart and bake as directed.
To freeze baked cookies:
- After the cookies have cooled completely, place them in an airtight container for freezer bag.
- Freeze them for up to a month.
- Enjoy straight out of the freezer or let sit out on your kitchen counter for about 30 minutes to thaw before eating.
How to store cookies
If you have extras after making Cinnamon Snowball Cookies, then they can be saved to munch on at a later time.
To save leftovers, separate into meal sized portions and then place in an airtight container and store:
- on the counter for 2-3 days
- in the refrigerator for up to a week
- in the freezer up to a month.
More EASY Cookie Recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe, I really hope you will take a moment to grab a few more easy recipes for another busy night!
You can check out all of my easy cookie recipes here, or see a few of our readers favorite recipes below.
- Key Lime Cookies
- Lemon Meltaway Cookies
- Butter Cookies with Cinnamon Glaze
- The BEST Soft Sugar Cookies
- White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies
Cinnamon Snowball Cookies
Ingredients
For the snowball cookies
- 1 cup butter, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 4 ounces very finely chopped pecans, (about 1 cup)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the cinnamon sugar coating
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F.
- In a large bowl, combine the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until fluffy.
- Then add the flour, pecans and salt and mix until everything is combined. The mixture may be slightly crumbly.
- Form balls with 1½ tablespoons of the dough and place on a baking sheet 1 inch apart. Bake for 9-12 minutes.
- While the cookies are baking mix together ¾ cup of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Transfer to a zip top bag or large container.
- Once done, let cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then place the cookies in the powdered sugar cinnamon mixture and shake to coat the outside in the mixture.
Recipe Notes
- Pecans – You can swap in finely chopped walnuts if you prefer.
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