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This Snowball Cookie Recipe has chocolate chips! Whatever they’re called, they’re one of my favorite Christmas cookies. Chocolate Chip Snowball Cookies have no nuts so they’re allergy friendly – and hello, CHOCOLATE. They melt-in your mouth and are one of my MOST POPULAR holiday cookies!
Do you have a food that, whenever you see or think about it, it makes you think of a family member? I have several: Whenever I eat Pillsbury Sugar Cookies, I think of my Nana. She passed them off as her own until I was an adult.
And then there are Russian Tea Cake cookies (aka Snowball Cookies). Whenever I see these, I think of my mom. Her’s is the original recipe that spawned all my Snowball Cookie Recipes – including this one with chocolate chips.
- This Snowball Cookie Recipe is easy to make – just 6 ingredients!
- You can make them ahead – they stay fresh for several days.
- They’re freezable too – freeze them for several months!
- Without nuts these are an allergy friendly – and tasty – option! Who doesn’t love adding chocolate to, well, anything?!
What is a snowball cookie?
These little bite-sized cookies are a buttery shortbread-like cookie. They only have a few ingredients so they mix up easy and make a ton. They don’t rise or spread; they have no baking soda or baking powder or even eggs! Once they’re rolled in powdered sugar they look like little snowballs! Traditionally these are made with chopped pecans or walnuts, but I love making variations. Snowball cookies are also called Russian Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding Cookies, and Butter Balls. So many names for the same amazing cookie!
6 Ingredients Needed
- Butter: You can use unsalted butter or salted butter, just make note of it and adjust salt accordingly.
- Powdered Sugar: Make a tender cookie. I make shortbread cookies with confectioners’ sugar as well, because I love the texture it lends.
- All-Purpose Flour: It’s very important to measure it correctly – spoon and level it, do not scoop or pack it.
- Salt: If using salted butter, reduce salt to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Vanilla: Only buy pure vanilla extract!
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Mini chips are the best to use for snowballs because they’re small cookies – that way you get chocolate in every bite. You can also use mini m&ms (like I do for my Christmas Snowball Cookies).
How to make this Snowball Cookie Recipe
- Cream butter and powdered sugar until smooth. I prefer using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for these cookies – it takes a lot to get the dough mixed. But a hand mixer works too.
- Add the salt, vanilla, and flour and mix. It’ll become crumbly.
- Keep mixing – it’ll seem like it’s not coming together – this will take longer if you’re using a hand mixer – just keep mixing.
- Once the dough comes together, add chocolate chips. Scoop 1 tablespoon sized balls with a cookie scoop onto a baking sheet and bake until no longer glossy and light golden on the bottoms.
- Cool until you can handle them and then roll in additional powdered sugar.
Expert Tips
- JUST KEEP MIXING – this dough WILL come together. Remember, it’ll take a lot longer if using a hand mixer, which is why I prefer a stand mixer.
- We use a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop for these and it makes about 4 dozen bite-sized cookies – you can crowd your pans because they won’t spread out in the oven.
- My mom uses a 1/2 or 3/4 tablespoon cookie scoop for tiny bite sized cookies – it’ll make many more if use use that size.
Snowball Cookie FAQ
These cookies are little balls of heaven – and they stay that way even when they’re baked because they have no eggs and no leavening. Without baking soda or baking powder or egg, they don’t spread, even with all that butter!
Keep mixing. It takes awhile for the dough to become a dough, especially if you’re using a hand mixer. It WILL come together eventually in a nice thick cohesive cookie dough. And make sure you don’t pack your flour or powdered sugar!
Did you use REAL butter? If you used imitation butter it won’t perform as well. Also, was your butter melted or really, really soft? That can affect spread sometimes. Otherwise, these cookies should only puff, if they change shape at all.
In this case, you probably rolled them while they were too hot. Just re-roll them once they’re cool. I often do this for effect – and make them SUPER powdery.
You can add an equal amount of chopped pecans or walnuts to make a more traditional snowball cookie recipe. You can even use almonds, cashews, or pistachios!
Chocolate Chip Snowball Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup (57g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 ¼ cups (279g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (170g) mini chocolate chips
- Additional powdered sugar for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix butter, ½ cup powdered sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add flour and salt and mix until the dough comes together. Stir in the chocolate chips. If dough is too soft, chill it until you can work it easily with your hands.
- Scoop 1 tablespoon balls of dough and place on prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake cookies for 7-10 minutes until bottoms are just slightly brown. Remove from oven and cool. Fill a small bowl with powdered sugar (about 1 cup) and roll each cookie in the sugar until coated.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- Add flavoring if you want – replace the vanilla extract with any other extract!
- Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.
- The mixture takes a long time to mix together. Use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment if you have one. A hand mixer works but it will take a long time to come together – you’ll think the dough isn’t going to mix but up the speed on the mixer and it will after a few minutes.
Recipe Nutrition
If you’re looking for a classic snowball cookie with chocolate chips – this is it! My mom’s favorite snowball recipe – no nuts! It’s the perfect Christmas cookie recipe.
Cant form the dough into balls. Crumble apart immediately. Used all the ingredients correctly and still won’t bind.
Are you using a hand or a stand mixer? It will come together eventually you just have to keep mixing. If you’re using a hand mixer you can add 1 tsp milk to try and help it, but even with the hand mixer it comes together as long as you didn’t pack your flour.
Dang they were so good.
Russian Teacakes/Snowballs are a family tradition. Sadly, one of my sons has a pretty severe nut allergy, so walnuts are not going to make an appearance in my house. I have tried both mini semi-sweet chocolate chips and mini white chololate chips to replace walnuts, as well as no additions at all. The mini white chocolate chips have a milder flavor and a much closer texture to walnuts. My family definitely agrees the mini white chocolate chips are the way to go if you need to be nut-free (the no addition version was scoffed at, by the way!). Thank you for sharing this recipe. It is nostalgic and traditional for many of our families. It brings back memories of childhood holidays. I am very glad we are able to have Snowballs on our Christmas cookie trays again!
Absolutely delicious recipe!! I I’ll be making these every Christmas.
So glad you enjoyed them!!
The recipe was really easy to make. I felt it was a little too sweet with the chocolate chips, but my grandchildren liked them. I thought they were a little too rich. I made them with chocolate chips because my grandchildren don’t like nuts.
I prefer toasted pecans in recipe.
My mil used to make similar ones but not with flour, shredded coconut instead and we never baked them! So they were basically like cookie dough so yummy!
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