These Keto Snowball Cookies are sure to make your holidays merry and bright! With crushed walnuts and a hint of cardamom or cinnamon, they are the perfect sugar-free holiday cookies for you and all of your loved ones.
This recipe for Keto Snowball Cookies was originally posted in 2013. Seven years ago! It was time to give this classic recipe a much needed update. Now they are even more tender and sweet, with fewer carbs and with a new how-to recipe video. You won’t believe how easy they are to make.
I got a very early jump on my Christmas baking this year. I seem to start a little earlier every year, because keto Christmas cookies are one of my favorite things in the world to bake.
I used to make myself wait until after Thanksgiving, lest I get sick of all Christmas baking before the big day rolls around. It’s my favorite holiday by far, and I never want to risk being bored by it all before Santa and his reindeer have a chance to fire up the sleigh and take off from the North Pole. Now that would be a real tragedy.
But on the other hand, why deny myself the pleasure of such an enjoyable pastime? Cookies like these keto snowballs do so well in the freezer, and then I have a wonderful assortment to give away to friends and family.
Keto Snowball Cookies or Russian Tea Cakes?
Or… Mexican wedding cakes? What do you call these tasty ball-shaped cookies rolled in powdered sweetener? I do love the name snowballs, since that’s exactly what they look like when they’re finished.
I received so many requests for Keto Snowball Cookies, being a standard holiday favourite for many families. Some people call them Russian Tea Cakes, others know them as Mexican Wedding Cakes.
Whatever you call them, they amount to the same thing…a tender, shortbread-like cookie in a round ball, sprinkled with copious amounts of powdered sugar.
Since I managed to nail a low carb version of my father’s favorite cookie, the Keto Pecan Crescent Cookies, I knew that making low carb snowballs would be a cinch. And I added some chopped walnuts and some cardamom for a burst of flavor.
Updated Low Carb Snowballs Recipe
I know that this is a much loved recipe and some of you are probably fearful hearing that I changed things up a bit. Never fear, my sweet keto friends! The recipe is much the same, with a few minor changes.
For one thing I reduced the almond flour a touch to make them more tender and melt-in-your-mouth. I also ditched the stevia extract, as many people prefer not to use it and my son appears to have a mild reaction to it.
When I first made these keto snowball cookies 7 years ago, I had a little difficulty getting them to roll properly in the powdered sweetener. It simply didn’t stick to the cookies as much as I had hoped. But somewhere over the years, Swerve changed their formula a bit and it’s much more like real powdered sugar.
So now they look and taste just like the snowball cookies your mum/grandma/cousin/aunt used to make!
How to make keto snowball cookies
These might just be some of the easiest keto Christmas cookies you will ever make. Here are my tips for the most tender, tastiest keto snowball cookies:
- Use a good fine almond flour like Bob’s Red Mill. That’s my top choice but some others like Wellbee and Honeyville are good too. I recently had a disappointing experience with the 365 brand from Whole Foods, as my dough for some other cookies came out very grainy.
- The walnuts should be quite finely chopped for a more cohesive dough. I recommend pulsing them in a food processor until they resemble coarse crumbs with a few bigger bits and pieces. You could also do pecans if you prefer.
- Don’t leave out the coconut flour, as it helps give these snowballs a good consistency so that they don’t lose their ball shape during baking.
- Not a fan of cardamom? Try some ground cinnamon instead. Use only 1/2 teaspoon as cinnamon is stronger than cardamom.
- Make sure that butter is well softened! You need to cream it well with the sweetener and you can’t do that with hard butter.
- Roll the dough as round as you can between your palms. The cookies will rise a tiny bit during baking so any lumps or bumps will even out.
- Let them cool completely and then roll them in powdered sweetener such as Swerve Confectioners. You can use other sweeteners but I am not sure how well those will coat and stick.
Can you make Keto Snowball Cookies ahead?
You sure can and in fact, I have some in my freezer at this very moment. You can roll them in sweetener first and then freeze or wait to roll them after they thaw.
As with all keto cookie recipes, you want to store them carefully in an airtight container. These are pretty sturdy cookies, though, so once frozen, they won’t crumble or break apart. And they can last up to two months.
To thaw, take them out of the container and spread them out so that they don’t touch each other. This helps keep the cookies from getting soggy.
More delicious keto walnut recipes
- Keto Maple Walnut Biscotti
- Keto Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake
- Keto Chocolate Walnut Torte
- Keto Maple Walnut Ice Cream
- Keto Walnut Fudge
- Keto Walnut Pie Crust
Keto Snowball Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups almond flour
- 1 cup walnut pieces finely chopped (almost ground)
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 - 1 tsp ground cardamom (or 1/2 tsp cinnamon)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener (granular or)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
Instructions
- For the cookies, preheat oven to 325F and line 2 baking sheets with silicone liners or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, chopped walnuts, coconut flour, cardamom, baking powder and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter with the sweetener until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg, and vanilla extract. Beat in the almond flour mixture until the dough comes together.
- Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place on baking sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake 16 to 18 minutes, or until just lightly golden brown. Remove and let cool on the pan.
- Place the powdered sweetener in a small shallow bowl. Roll each cookie until completely coated in the powdered sweetener.
María Riojas says
Hi! Can I use coconut oil instead of butter?
Carolyn says
I haven’t tried it so I can’t be sure it will work.
Lisa says
Hi, I use allulose in almost all of my baked goods. It bakes and tastes very much like sugar, but is a sugar alcohol, so no net carbs. It is only 70% as sweet as sugar so you may need slightly more, but I always start with the amount of sweetener called for, and add more if needed. And it has NO cooling effect!
Carolyn says
It’s not actually a sugar alcohol. It’s a sugar… that doesn’t impact blood sugar. Strange but true. but many people, myself included, can get severe GI distress from it.
Vicki says
As always another wonderful holiday cookie from you. Also I am searching for a great keto Hachiya persimmon cookie recipe. If anyone can do it, you can!!! Thanks
Pan says
These are fantastic! I made them before and I made them again after your update. They’re delicious. This time I skipped cinnamon and cardamom, and I used the shorter end of the baking time so they were tender inside. So good!
David says
I’ve made these Keto Snowball Cookies twice so far. The first time I used Stevia and the second time I used Swerve. Both were absolutely fantastic! The only difference that I found was that the Swerve cookies spread out more in the oven while the Stevia cookies held their shape. This was my first time using Cardamom as well and we all loved them. These are our new favorite Keto cookie!
Carolyn says
Interesting to know!
AnnMarie says
I made these for Christmas, so I would have a gf treat for dessert. Holding myself to the two cookies per serving isn’t easy as these cookies are very satisfying.
Kathy Cooke says
These were fun and easy to make with my daughter, and omg, are they delicious! I got 42 cookies made with a small coffee scoop. I love the cardamom flavor! I ground fresh cardamom seeds in a coffee grinder, so it had mega flavor. So, so good that I can’t believe how good they are! We’ll be leaving some out for Santa tonight and enjoying a bunch Christmas morning, I’m sure.
Elle says
I made a half batch, used 3 TBL Allulose, 1 TBL LaKanto Golden Monkfruit, cinnamon and one egg yolk. THEY. ARE. FABULOUS! Most of the keto desserts I try are not too good. I tried a meringue cookie recipe today that went straight into the trash. I really think Allulose is a game-changer and vastly superior in taste to Swerve. I hope it turns out to be OK for keto in the long-run. So excited to have a special Christmas Dessert with a cup of coffee while the rest of the non-keto family eats the 2 cakes I made for them!
Carolyn says
So I have to caution with allulose as some of us, me included, experience strong GI distress with it if used in high amounts.
Elle says
Oh sorry, I see the egg now! The pecan snowballs I grew up eating didn’t use an egg. Can it be made without? I want to halve the recipe. I suppose I could use just the yolk or just the white. Any advice?
Carolyn says
It needs the egg.
Sunia says
Hi Carolyn,
I am looking for a rum ball recipe, and I was thinking of adapting this, but rum balls are generally not cooked. Any suggestions?
Carolyn says
Please use the search box, I have a very good rum ball recipe already.
Katie says
Looks so delicious. I’m sure my family will love this one!
Beth says
Yum! These look so delicious! My family and I are going to love this recipe! So excited to make this!
Kimberly says
These look and sound fabulous! That touch of cardamom sounds fab, I can’t wait to try these!
Christine Hosni says
Can I use stevia for this recipe? Thanks
Carolyn says
I honestly can’t guarantee results when you change sweeteners but you’re welcome to try.
Mark says
I made these snowballs yesterday, they’re excellent! Taste is superb and they truly melt in your mouth with every bite. You are my main source for dessert recipes now, your recipes are wonderful!
Thank you!
DH says
Thank you, Carolyn, for another traditional recipe that I’ve missed. It’s wonderful to be able to make them again. As for the name, my husband always refers to them simply as “little white balls” LOL. Happy Holidays!
Anu says
This is marvellous! I have never had these cookies before, but Indian sweets often use cardamom, and I love the flavour (if not the excessive sweetness!) of those, so I figured this would be a winner. I only had regular (not super fine) almond flour at hand so I had to use that, but they still came out great and tasted delicious. Mine flattened a bit more than yours (oven temperature perhaps? I have a fan forced oven and can’t switch the fan off unfortunately. Or was it the texture of the almond flour?) but they still looked perfectly charming. Thank you for sharing another foolproof, delicious recipe 🙂
Carinne says
Sorry but these do not taste like traditional snowball cookies. Is it just me and my family or is it hard to get over the cooling sensation of erythritol?! Any tips would be appreciated. My kids wouldn’t even finish their cookie. I’m forcing myself to eat because I can’t stand to waste all of these ingredients.
Carolyn says
Okay so it is you… sort of. Some people experience that, some don’t. I get it with plain erythritol but not at all with Swerve. You can try these with another sweetener, if you prefer.
Elle says
Try Allulose,. Total game changer.
Nat says
Just made them! Half with cinnamon and half with cardamom and they are both fantastic. I don’t do dairy so I subbed with spectrum palm shortening and for the sweetener I used a mix of xylitol & lakanto monkfruit. I dusted with sukrin icing sugar. Seriously amazing tea cookies wow! So soft and chewy. My new fave!