Russian Tea Cakes are tender and buttery on the inside, studded with crunchy walnuts and rolled in powdered sugar. They dissolve in your mouth and you won’t be able to stop at just one.
This is also one of the easiest cookie recipes. We have perfected it over the years. Read on to learn the KEY to making the best Russian Tea Cakes.
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Russian tea cakes are one of our favorite Christmas cookies and a staple of holiday cookie platters, right up there with classic Sugar Cookies. Just like our Almond Snowball Cookies, these look like adorable little snowballs.
What are Russian Tea Cakes?
Russian Tea Cakes are also known as Mexican Wedding Cakes or Snowball Cookies. The cookie dough contains nuts, usually walnuts or pecans which gives the cookies a nutty flavor and slight crunch.
The butter in the cookie dough makes the cookies tender and powdery and they almost dissolve in your mouth. The cookies are rolled in powdered sugar twice to give them a white coating making them look like snowballs.
Ingredients for Russian Tea Cakes
- All-purpose flour – be sure the flour is measured correctly.
- Unsalted butter – softened at room temperature. Gives the cookies a tender crumb. Forgot to soften your butter? See our tip to soften butter in 5 minutes.
- Walnuts – toasting the walnuts until they are golden will give you the best tasting cookies. You can substitute with pecans or even pistachios. Powdered Sugar – also known as confectioners sugar. We add 1/2 cup to the batter and use more to roll the cookies.
- Vanilla Extract – adds flavor. We love homemade vanilla extract for all of our baking.
- Salt – balances the sweetness. Fine sea salt is our salt of choice.
The KEY to the Best Snowball Cookies
Toast the walnuts on a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing frequently for about 5 minutes or until nuts are lightly golden and fragrant then remove to a cutting board to cool and chop the nuts. Whether you are using walnuts or pecans, toasting the nuts will really bring out their best flavor and will make your cookies even better.
Pro Tip: Nuts can burn very quickly on a skillet. Never walk away from your skillet and be sure to toss them frequently. As soon as you can smell the aroma of the nuts, they are done toasting.
How to make Russian Tea Cakes
- Cream together butter, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
- Add flour and salt and mix until combined and no streaks of flour remain. The mixture will be lumpy and not smooth.
- Add walnuts once they are cooled and chopped. Use a firm spatula to mix them in until well distributed in the dough.
- Shape into 1-inch balls (using a small cookie scoop makes portioning easy) and place them on a parchment or Silpat-lined baking sheet, keeping them at least an inch apart. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are very lightly browned at the base.
- Roll hot cookies in powdered sugar and place on a cookie platter to cool completely to room temperature.
- Roll cooled cookies again in powdered sugar to get an even and generous coating of powdered sugar.
How to tell when Tea Cakes are Done?
These cookies bake up quickly. They are done when the edges of the cookies are lightly golden in color with a golden base.
Make-Ahead
Storing at room temperature – Cookies may be stored up to 1 week in an airtight container.
To freeze Russian tea cakes – store in a freezer-safe lidded container or zip bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and enjoy.
Common Questions
You don’t have to use nuts. You can leave them out completely or fill them with a surprise such as a few butterscotch chips (my son’s favorite). If omitting nuts, I suggest adding another 1/4 cup of flour or the cookies will spread in the oven since the nuts help them keep their form.
They are essentially the same thing and the terms are used interchangeably. At Christmas time, they are referred to as snowball cookies.
You can sub with half whole wheat flour if you prefer. It will add flavor and color to the center of the cookies.
More Christmas Cookies and Bars
Christmas baking is a nostalgic activity and a great time to make beautiful food memories. Explore all of our best Christmas Recipes Here and I’m sure you’ll find many new favorite cookies in this list.
- Christmas Sugar Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Lemon Bars
- Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Christmas Coconut Balls
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
This Tea Cakes recipe was first published in January 2010. It has been updated with new photos and we shared all of our best tips for richer flavor and texture.
Russian Tea Cakes Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 lb unsalted butter, or 16 tbsp, at room temperature
- 1 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
- ½ cup confectioners sugar, powdered sugar, plus 2 cups more for rolling cookies
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
Quick Prep:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or silicone liner.
- Toast nuts on a dry skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes, tossing frequently until fragrant and lightly golden.
How to Make Russian Tea Cakes:
- In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, cream together butter, 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, and 1 tsp of vanilla, until smooth.
- Add flour and salt and continue mixing until no streaks of flour remain. The mixture will be lumpy. Use a firm spatula to fold in the nuts until evenly incorporated.
- Use a firm spatula to fold in the chopped nuts until evenly incorporated.
- Shape the dough into 1-inch balls (using a small cookie scoop to portion the dough makes the process easy) and place them on a clean baking sheet at least 1-inch apart. Bake at 400˚F for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are golden at the base.
- Fill a bowl with 1 cup powdered sugar and roll the cookie balls in it while they are still very warm then transfer to a platter to cool completely.
- Once cookies are at room temperature, roll them in more powdered sugar to get perfect little snowballs. Cookies may be stored up to 1 week in an airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
The Tea Cakes were loved by all the guests. One asked for the recipe and all agreed this is the best ever!
Wow! I’m so glad this was a hit! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Terri!
Showstopper!! My eastern European brother in law was impressed!
QUESTION: Can I fill this cookie with dulce de leche?
Great to hear that it was a hit! I haven’t tested that to advise. If you do an expeirment, we’d like to know how it goes!
Can this recipe be doubled? I have to make several batches for a family reunion. Everyone is crazy over them. Thank you
Hi Tammy! It should be fine to double the recipe.
So glad they were a hit!
I want to make these for my daughter’s bridal shower but she is dairy free and has a sensitivity to cocnut. What can I substitute the butter with?
Hi Adriana! I have not tested a substitute to advise.
Hi Natasha, I am looking for the tip on warming the butter in 5 min.
Thanks,
Bill
Hi Bill, you can check my short video on it.
Hello! Can I use almonds for this recipe? A friend gave me two bags of almonds and I would like to use them, but. I’m not sure if they will work, because your recipe only call for walnuts or pecans…
Hi Vegonia, I haven’t tested this with almonds, but I imagine that may work! If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
I only make with almonds and they are great!!! I have tried them with pecans and walnuts, but we prefer them with almonds.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
I’ve always used almonds. The dough is a bit dryer but it still works.
These are great cookies. I substituted pecans for the walnuts and added almond extract. What a hit. I have everyone asking for the recipe.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Diane!
I misplaced my mom’s recipe so I used yours. they taste really really close to the original 🙂 Thank you
That’s great, Christine! Thank you for trying my recipe.
Mom’s almost always adapt a recipe. In the case of my mom (whose recipe I lost), she added a teaspoon of pure almond extract as well as the vanilla, but she also added 2 teaspoons of brandy to them. That’s why mine never tasted as good as hers until I actually got her recipe.
Why is my dough crumbly like pie dough. I see when you cream your butter it is very creamy. What am I doing wrong. Followed recipe to a T
Hi Maggie! This happens when there is too much flour. Watch my tutorial on how to measure your ingredients correctly, HERE .
Hello Natasha!
These were absolutely delicious! So tender and buttery. I did use chopped pecans instead of the walnuts. Thank you for such a treat!
You’re very welcome, Mary! I’m so glad you loved them.
Help my dough is too dry and crumbly. What can I do aside from tossing it and starting all over.
Regards,
Kerry
Hi Kerry! It sounds like you possibly used too much flour. Watch this tutorial on how measure my flour HERE. I am not sure how to fix the batter but a little moisture from liquid should help soften it.
Hi again. My recipe says to put them in the fridge over night before you bake them.
Hi Sherry. Refrigerating before baking is not needed.
Hi. Help. I don’t know what I did wrong this year with Russian tea cookies. They flattened out some & fell apart easily.
Hi Sherry! Could you have possibly used too much butter? I would look over the ingredients again to see if you mismeasured anything and watch my process to see if your dough looked differently.
Hello,
My local shop makes Russian Tea cakes but they make them flat. They are maybe 2 to 2 1/2 in. in diameter. Just wondering if you think your recipe will work ok if I choose to flatten cookies before baking? Thanks!
Hi Jeanne! I think that would work fine. Watch them in the oven if they are flatter, in case they bake faster.
Hi Natasha. Do you use a regular cookie sheet or an insulated (double-walled)? I have both. I typically use the insulated one for stuff that might burn on the bottom (at higher temp) like Stromboli, biscuits, etc.
Hi! No, I did not, I just used a regular baking sheet. I think the insulated pans would work fine as well. You may need to experiment with the temperature and baking time of the recipe. Insulated pans bake slower.
Hi Natasha!
Happy holidays from Canada.
Can I use gluten free flour in your snowball recipe instead of all purpose? Love your recipes. 🎄
Thanks
Jeannie
I haven’t tested that so I can’t say for sure but I think it should work. I don’t have much experience with gluten-free flour but I would suggest using a gluten-free flour that is intended for baking.
I am all out of unsalted butter. Can I use salted butter and eliminate salt in recipe?
Yes that will work!
Hi, Natasha. Have you ever used browned butter in this recipe?
Hi Natalia, I have not tried that. If you test it out, let me know how it goes. You might do a google search for tips on that first.
The walnuts I have are already chopped. Your recipe calls for 1 cup of walnuts, but I think that is the measurement before chopping. Approximately what would be the measurement if already chopped?
Thank you
Hi Judy, I did a quick google search, 1 cup of walnuts prior to being chopped weighed approx. 115 grams so you could measure this out and use it for the recipe.
I usually love your recipes, but I followed this one closely and the cookies turned out way too hard and dry. I used an oven thermometer. I think 400 is too high or 12 minutes is too long.
Hi Eva! The thermometer is a great idea. Every oven bakes differently so if it needs some adjustments you can experiment with it. I have had success at this time and temperature. Dry and hard cookies could also be a result of using too much flour. Watch my tutorial on how to measure your ingredients HERE to ensure you are measuring correctly.
I also found that 12 minutes at this temperature is far too long. I take the cookies out before 8 minutes. Otherwise, the bottoms get burnt. (I didn’t over measure the dry ingredients, and the oven has an internal temperature.) Next time, I’ll try reducing the temperature to 375 and see how that goes.
These scorched on the bottom at 12 minutes at 400 degrees. Other recipes I’ve seen set the baking temperature at 350.
Hi Douglas! I highly encourage the use of an internal oven thermometer if you don’t already use one. Every oven heats and bakes differently so you may need to make an adjustment. It could also be the pan that was used and how that material conducts heat. Also, be sure that your oven rack is positioned appropriately and not too close to the bottom.
I divided the dough and used 2 different cookie sheets, one was standard cheap cookie sheet the other was a no-stick Wilton. Same dough, same oven, same temperature (400 for 12 min.). Cookies on the cheap cookie sheet were perfect, although they did flatten a little. The cookies on the Wilton burned on the bottom before 12 minutes.
I believe the oven thermometer is a good idea but the cookie sheet is an important factor. Maybe test a few cookies before cooking a whole batch.
As someone else mentioned, they had a recipe that said to chill the dough first. I had that recipe & lost it. It worked very well and was the reason I used two cookie sheets. You don’t want to put all that buttery dough on a hot cookie sheet if you are cooking g more than 1 batch.