First Cookies of the Season

Last night I had the honor of baking the first Christmas cookies of the season!  At work today we had a Mexican and Italian themed holiday luncheon.  I sign up to bring a dessert, so I decided to bring Mexican Wedding Cookies!  Have you had these cookies before?  They are so easy to make and quite delicious.  Plus, they look like little snowballs...how Christmasy!  I have been making them at Christmas time for the past few years and they are always a hit.  As usual, I used whole wheat flour and I did not have enough pecans, so I used almonds too.  I didn't get to try one (there were too many other goodies to eat), but they were all gone by the end of the day...so they must have been good.  Enjoy!

 

Ingredients.

 

Hot cookie being rolled in powered sugar.

 

Finished.

Mexican Wedding Cookies

by Paula Deen

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for coating baked cookies

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting hands

1 cup pecans, chopped into very small pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar at low speed until it is smooth.
3. Beat in the vanilla.
4. At low speed gradually add the flour.
5. Mix in the pecans with a spatula.
6. With floured hands, take out about 1 tablespoon of dough and shape into a crescent. Continue to dust hands with flour as you make more cookies.
7. Place onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 40 minutes.
8. When cool enough to handle but still warm, roll in additional confectioners' sugar. Cool on wire racks.