Valentine Snowball Cookies

Along with much of the rest of the population, these cookies are a family favorite.  Sometimes we call them Mexican Wedding Cake Cookies, but in my little, homemade cookie recipe book that I made in Brownies from 1963, they are called Snowballs.  Snowballs is a nice fit for a January cookie, and I made them pink/red, which allows them to do double-duty as a Valentine's Day cookie also.  I actually made these cookies last January (in fact I noticed that I uploaded them to my computer exactly one year ago today!), but never posted them.

Better late than never, right?

I think they look so pretty with the contrasting white of the powdered sugar. The reason these cookies are so popular is because they are pretty easy to throw together and they are so delicious;  they melt in your mouth! 
For variation it's easy to add alternate nuts other than walnuts, and to roast them first, for more flavor.

They are the perfect cookie for any season, but right now would go well with a cup of hot chocolate:)

Valentine Snowball Cookies
1 cup butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup roasted walnuts, finely ground
Powdered sugar
Food coloring (red or pink)

Cream butter together with the sugar and add vanilla. Mix well. Add the flour and the ground, roasted* nuts. Add the food coloring and mix thoroughly.  Shape into balls and bake at 375 degrees until lightly browned (My oven took about 15 min.). Cool and roll in powdered sugar.


*to roast nuts, place in a single layer on a baking sheet and place in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.  Grind after they are cooled.

Happy New Year!

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