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 ½ 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 ¾ cups almond flour
- 1 cup walnut pieces finely chopped (almost ground)
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ - 1 teaspoon ground cardamom (or ½ teaspoon cinnamon)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup Swerve Sweetener (granular or)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ 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.
Meg Russell says
These are a wonderful alternative to our sugar laden snowballs but I would suggest two adjustments 1) I would try half the amount of cardamom next time because it is such a strong flavor and not one my family is accustomed to. In one batch, I used almond extract instead and the flavor was superb! 2) I have not enjoyed any of the sweetener substitutes at all, either the erythritol is too minty or the stevia is too bitter or the Splenda is too gummy and artificial in its aftertaste, but I just found an amazing low glycemic sweetener called “Whey-Low” and goodness if it doesn’t taste EXACTLY like the real thing. I would suggest trying a batch with this sweetener. I kind of just Googled and Googled and found it and was able to order it online. Now there is no bitterness or aftertaste or cooling effect, I am totally thrilled. Thanks for such an awesome recipe!! This is one I will be baking to deliver to all of my clients! -Meg Russell
Sonya Johnston says
what is stevia extract? can I use sweet leaf stevia drops? thanks for the great holiday recipes!
Carolyn says
That’s what stevia extract is.
yesenia says
Just made a batch of these and they are super dry on the palate. Not dense nor tough, but just very dry like needing to take a sip of a beverage with every bite.
I followed everything exactly and noticed the dough never “came together”, but I still formed 3/4″ balls with my hands
Good flavor but dry.
Carolyn says
Well then something went wrong because they should not be and they dough should most definitely come together. May I ask what brand of sweetener and/or almond flour you used?
yesenia says
Store Brand sucralose and Bob’s Mill almond flour. I pressed them slightly with a “+” design. They held together well. I added a dollop of sugar-free vanilla frosting on top and decorated with a walnut.
They’re attractive and another taster says they taste really good. They’re deceptively small but last 3-4 bites in the mouth, but there must be water nearby for sipping.
Carolyn says
Bob’s flour is fine as long as it’s the Super Fine (they used to make a coarser grind but there isn’t much of that left in stores anymore). But the sweetener may be the issue here. I don’t use sucralose at all but I do know it can dry things out a lot.
yesenia says
Not at all familiar with cardamom and happy to try this pairing with walnut, but would any variation work such as nutmeg and pistachio?
And I know these are snowBALLS, but can I press them down on the cookie sheet in either a thumbprint or pinwheel shape, just to fancy them up?
I’m looking for something to take to a Christmas party and want a shape fancier than balls.
Carolyn says
These are totally adaptable so any of your ideas should work. If you flatten them, they may cook faster.
Catherine says
These are crazy delicious. The texture is on point……can’t stop eating them 🙂
Kayla says
Could anyone help me out here? I really wanna try these but I cannot stand even the smallest bit of coconut ANYTHING in my food. It makes me sick.. im wondering if maybe I could use a little cream of tarter? or some baking soda? :\
Carolyn says
Sub another 1/3 cup almond flour instead.
Janet says
These just came out of the oven. Tasted the dough before going in and I decided to just give them a sprinkle of powdered Swerve instead of rolling them in it. Just the right sweetness for us. Seems the longer we are eating LCHF the less sweet we like things! Thanks again for all that you do in helping me stay on my WOE….your recipes are terrific.
Carolyn says
So glad you liked them!
Hannah says
Commenting again because I forgot to click the follow up comments box. Thanks!
Carolyn says
I bought ground cardamom from Penzey’s.
Hannah says
These look absolutely beautiful and I can’t wait to try them!
One question – did you use black or green cardamom and did you buy it coarsely ground or did you grind it yourself with a mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder?
Carolyn says
I bought ground cardamom from Penzey’s.
Cindy says
I really want to make these, but am very bothered by the cooling effect from Swerve. Sometimes I use splenda even though I know swerve is a better choice. I’m new to sugar free baking, is there some way to negate the cooling effect from swerve/erythritol? Or will I just have to get used to it? Thanks!
Carolyn says
See, I don’t experience cooling from Swerve at all, although I do with regular erythritol. So every palate is different. You could try more stevia in the actual cookie and less Swerve.
Jean B. says
Hi Cindy, I, too, experience a very strong cooling effect when I use Swerve. I think I will try Truvia in this recipe because, in smaller amounts, it has had no such effect. Truvia doesn’t measure like sugar does, so for this recipe I will omit the stevia and and use the full 1/2 cup of Truvia.
I hope this helps!
And Carolyn, this is one of our traditional holiday cookies, so thanks so much for perfecting a low-carb version!
Fun size wife says
You just blew me away! Cardamom is one of my favorite spices and I thought how marvelous these would be if they were made ahead a week or two and frozen. I can’t wait to make these!
Liza says
Can I substitute anything (soy free also) for the eggs?
Carolyn says
I have no idea but I rather doubt it. Flax eggs might work but I really can’t be sure.
Lena says
I’ve made this recipe several times with chicken eggs or flax eggs when I ran out of chicken eggs and both ways worked beautifully.
jo says
Hi Carolyn. I’ve made these a few times now and they never fail to delight. I used to love making them as a kid, every Christmas, and it’s so great to be able to make them again. Just so thankful for all the work you do, and all that you share with your readers so I thought I’d leave you a note. Thank you!
Buttoni says
These sound so good. Love cardamom.
Pan says
I made these this weekend with half pecans and half walnuts. They are incredible! The taste and texture are spot on, just like I remember from the high carb cookies. I’ve been low carbing for 10 years, and in the past I’ve made so many recipes that were pretty good for low carb, but never unequivocally GOOD. What I love about your recipes is that anyone, low carb or not, would think they’re delicious! Thank you! I call these Mexican wedding cakes, by the way.
Carolyn says
Thanks, Pan. I try to make things that everyone will love!
Malainie says
Mom called these Sand Tarts, but made them with pecans instead of walnuts and no cardamom. I’ll have to try this recipe! Looks really good! We always rolled them in the powdered sugar when they were warm, so it would stick.
Jan says
I made these with cashew flour and pecans because I was out of blanched almond flour and walnuts. Loved the way they turned out. My first time using cardamom in a recipe and I liked it a lot. This is truly a recipe that you can serve to people who are not eating low carb and if you don’t tell them, they will never guess these cookies are sugar and wheat flour free.
Buttoni says
I just love cardamom in desserts, Carolyn. I can’t WAIT to try these!
Pam says
These tasted great but they did not stay formed in round ball shapes but spread any clues to why?
Carolyn says
What brand of almond flour did you use? Sounds like too much butter or that you used almond meal, not almond flour. Also, what brand of sweetener?
maggie says
Mine spread as well. I used honeyville almond flour and a stick of butter. Hmmmmm… they tasted good but spread a fair amount.
Pan says
I packed them pretty hard as I rolled them and they stayed round. Maybe it’s the pressure?
Carolyn says
Could be the sweetener too, I am not sure.
pam says
I use Bob red mill almond flour unsalted butter my other recipes that I make for non gluten friends with regular flour stay in shape
Pam says
I did use almond flour but I used regular sugar
Carolyn says
Well that would be the problem, then, I think. Sugar is hygroscopic (attracts moisture) so things are bound to spread more.
Cheryl Deger says
I found that if you use a scale for measuring the almond flour and sugars instead of a measuring cup the finished product is right on!!! Hope this helps!!! Merry Merry!!!
Katharine says
These were great! I rolled them in powdered swerve while warm and found it was plenty of sweetness. Didn’t use the rest. The texture of these is spot-on! I was unsure about the cardamom at first but it really mellowed after they cooled. Now I LOVE them!
Tammy says
Hi Carolyn. These look fantastic as do all of your recipes. I am ADDICTED to your website! I was just wondering what brand of powdered stevia you prefer?
Carolyn says
I typically use liquid stevia from NuNaturals. I have used their powdered as well and it’s quite good too.
Tammy says
Thanks Carolyn.