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 (180 g) almond flour
- 1 cup (117 g) 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 (113.5 g) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (91 g) erythritol sweetener, (granular or powdered)
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (91 g) 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.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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These turned out perfectly for me. I switched out the cardamom for 1/2 tsp almond extract. Yum! Thank you so much for this successful recipe!!
I love your recipes, but was so disappointed in this one. I followed the directions exactly and the cookies were dry. They need more fat… I made them again I’d add another stick of butter.
Hi Rochelle… as you can see from the other comments, these do not turn out dry for most people. And another full stick of butter would cause them to be a total mess, they would spread like crazy. You say you followed the directions but something must have gone awry. Can you tell me what brand of almond flour you used and what sweetener?
if cookies are dry, try baking them a minute less.
They all look delicious & anxious to make some. Thank you!
I’ve made these 2 years in a row for Christmas. Never fail recipe. Kids think they taste as good as the full sugar original cookies. If you’re on the fence and love this type of cookie, just do it!!!! You won’t be disappointed.
Thank you!
is the 1/2 of powdered sugar go into the batter or is it for rolling the cookies after they cool? Thanks
What is a good butter substitute for this recipe?I’m dairy free? Thank you!
Coconut oil should work.
Love this low carb version of my favorite cookies!
What can I use instead of coconut flour?
You will need 1/3 cup more almond flour.
I made the original recipe, and also this update — eliminated the cardamom, added some espresso powder, cocoa powder and some erythritol chocolate chips. Amazing!
These came out really good overall, light, airy and nutty. However, there is a very tiny bit of a bitter aftertaste. I’m wondering if it could be the walnuts? I followed the recipe to the letter. They are still pretty good, I might use pecans next time.
It might be… maybe they were a bit rancid? They do get more bitter when that’s the case.
My apologies, I think it was something I ate beforehand as they later did not have the aftertaste. Excellent cookies, my husband said they are the best cookies he’s ever had!
These cookies are very dry and crumbled when I took them off the pan. There is no way I will be able to roll them is powdered ‘sugar’ after. There needs to be more wet ingredients.
No, it doesn’t need more wet ingredients… if you read the reviews, you see that most people have great success. So it makes me wonder what brand of almond flour you are using…
Bake Good is the almond flour I used. It was the end of my bag and I used coconut flour(1/4 c) to make 1 3/4 c.
I baked the second pan longer (22 min total) and they have stayed together better. Rolled a couple in powdered ‘sugar’ and they stayed together.
Your mistake was using coconut flour. it is MUCH drier than almond flour and that’s exactly why they were dry and crumbly. Please read my tutorials on baking with almond flour and with coconut flour. You can never replace one for the other without changing everything else!
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/low-carb-basics-baking-with-coconut-flour/
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/low-carb-basics-baking-with-almond-flour/
Thank you for this recipe. I love snowball cookies! Do you think this recipe would work in a cake pan instead of cookies or would it be too hard to cut a piece out? Thank you again and Merry Christmas!
Not sure these would hold together well as giant cookie.
Hi,
I see you give instructions for freezing the naked cookies, but do you think these would freeze well raw? Say as dough balls like you ginger cookies? I read the full post but didn’t see anything about this, so thought I’d ask.
Yes, you could do that. Let them thaw before baking.
So, half a cup of granular or powdered sugar, then another half cup of powdered? Is that correct? Thanks.
Yes.
Hi Carolyn! On the snowball recipe you say swerve granular or… and then nothing lol. What would the or be for the cookie dough. Thanks!
Or powdered.
Delicious! Russian Tea Cakes? No matter what you call these divine cookies, they will fulfill your crave! Every recipe is better than the last. I’ve been gluten free for nearly 15 years and am so grateful for your recipes! I’m low carb, not always Keto. I don’t care for the powdered Swerve so I used real powdered sugar on these. It’s a small amount and made them even more like the original.
Do you Recommend Blue Diamond almond flour for cookies ? I have most of your books, you’re my go to girl for all things keto ♥️ Thank you for all your expertise in baking and cooking
I am not sure I’ve ever tried that one. I wish I could say! Give it a try and if they are grainy, maybe move to another?
Making these tonight will put a little Lilly’s chocolate in the middle of half of them it’s a nice surprise! I now use mostly BLUE DIAMOND almond flour the texture and price are great! In a pinch I like Kirkland brand (Costco) too .