Mexican Wedding Cookies

by Sabrina Snyder

Last Update:

13 Comments

5 from 5 votes
32 servings
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Refrigerate 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
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Mexican Wedding Cookies are soft, melt-in-your-mouth treats coated in powdered sugar that’s perfect for any celebration! Try them out today!

Cookies rolled in sugar are a secret favorite of mine including my Hershey’s Kiss Cookies recipe and my Dark Chocolate Crinkle Cookies. Give them all a try and let me know what you think!

Sabrina’s Mexican Wedding Cookies Recipe

Mexican Wedding Cookies are actually known by several different names, but are very popular in the United States. The origin is somewhat unknown, but some guess that they originated in England, or even the Middle East. You may also hear them referred to as snowball cookies or Italian wedding cookies. “Snowball cookies” are named for the layer of confectioner’s sugar on the outside of the cookie. Though they’re effectively the same, Italian wedding cookies and snowball cookies are also made with walnuts. They are also sometimes referred to as butterball cookies, which again are similar to snowball cookies but also traditionally are made with walnuts instead of the pecans.

Recipe Card

Dinner, then Dessert

Mexican Wedding Cookies Recipe

Mexican Wedding Cookies are soft, melt-in-your-mouth treats coated in powdered sugar that's perfect for any celebration! Try them out today!
Yield 32 servings
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder
cookie covered in white powdered sugar bitten in half
PrintRate

Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup unsalted butter , softened
  • 1 3/4 cup powdered sugar , divided
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

  • In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and ¾ cup powdered sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy before adding in the vanilla and salt.
  • Sift the flour then add it in until just combined and fold in the pecans.
  • Chill the dough for 2 hours then bake rounded tablespoon sized cookie dough balls at 325 degrees for 12-14 minutes before rolling warm cookies one at a time in remaining 1 cup of powdered sugar.

Notes

Note: click on times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer while cooking.

Nutrition

Calories: 123kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 19mg | Potassium: 20mg | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 175IU | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.4mg

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Sabrina’s Tips

I like to make a double batch of these, then freeze half for another night. You can also freeze the dough, then bring them from the freezer straight onto a baking sheet when you need a quick dessert option. They are melt-in-your-mouth good, so it’s not surprising that they’re so popular!

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About this Recipe

Mexican Wedding Cookies are a popular dessert to serve for special occasions like holidays, made with butter, all purpose flour, sugar, and pecans, then rolled in a thick layer of powdered sugar. These are also called Mexican Wedding Cakes, even though they’re technically a cookie.

Can this be made ahead of time?

Yes! If you want to freeze the dough, place the balls on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet in a freezer for about an hour. Then move the balls to a plastic bag, and wrap the plastic bag in tinfoil to make it airtight. You can bake them while the balls are still frozen, then roll in the powdered sugar as normal.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

  • Use a small ice cream scoop to scoop out the cookie dough, then roll it into a ball with your hands. This will help make sure each cookie is about the same size.
  • You absolutely have to refrigerate the dough before you bake these cookies, because otherwise your cookies will flatten instead of keeping the signature shape. You can also chill them quickly in the freezer, for about 20 minutes.

How to Store

  • Store: Mexican wedding cookies will last in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week. Store them with a sheet of parchment paper between each layer, to keep the cookies from sticking together.
  • Freeze: If you’re going to freeze them, wait to add the powdered sugar until after your cookies are defrosted. Place them on a baking sheet and reheat them at 300 degrees F for a few minutes, then roll them in powdered sugar, adding more as needed.

Variations

  • Nuts: This recipe uses pecans but you can make this with other nuts like walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, or almonds. You can also toast the pecans or use my Slow Cooker Candied Cinnamon Pecans to add more flavor.
  • Frosting: Traditionally these are rolled in powdered sugar, but you can also try icing them to make Italian Wedding Cookies, or dipping them in Chocolate Ganache. 

More Delicious Cookies

Cookies with Pecans pin image

These photos were in a previous version of this post

cookies covered in powdered sugar on baking sheet
close up of cookie covered in powdered sugar

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

See more posts by Sabrina

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. Hi,
    I’m wondering if the Mexican wedding cookies can be made with cocoa powder also, and if so how much do you add?

    Reply

    1. I haven’t tested it but I would think around 1/4 to 1/3 cup of cocoa powder would work. You might be able to find a recipe online and use that as a guideline too.

      Reply