Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies Recipe for Holiday Baking

Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies

Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies are coconut cookies rolled in powdered sugar, and they melt in your mouth the second you bite into one. If you have ever watched a cookie tray empty out before dinner, you already know the kind of quiet power a small, snowy looking sweet can have.

These cookies earn their spot on the holiday table for three simple reasons. They are sweet. They are portable. They look like little snowballs lined up in a row. Pack a few into a tin for a cookie exchange, tuck them into gift bags for neighbors, or set them out with coffee while the tree goes up.

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They are also wonderfully unfussy. There is no chilling, no rolling pin, no piping bag, and no decorating. Just a soft dough, a hot oven, and a bowl of powdered sugar waiting at the end of the process.

In this article I will walk through why I picked this particular Christmas cookie, how the coconut version came to be, the full ingredient list, and the step by step method so you can bake a batch of your own this season.

My Favorite Festive Christmas Cookies

Every December I do the same thing, and every December it takes longer than it should. I make a cup of tea, open my laptop, and start hunting for the one Christmas cookie recipe that will define the season.

The problem is never a lack of options. Food blogs, Pinterest boards, and Facebook groups are overflowing with ideas this time of year. I scrolled past snickerdoodles, chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon cookies, almond gingerbread cookies, and more snowball cookies than I could count.

Every single one looked better than the last, and my saved folder grew until it was completely unusable.

So I gave myself one rule to narrow things down. The cookies had to be white.

Why white? Because snow is the whole mood of the season for me. A white cookie looks like winter sitting on a plate, and a tray of them next to a mug of cocoa feels like the holidays in a single photo. That one decision cut my list dramatically. Suddenly I was choosing between two finalists instead of twenty.

The first finalist was Lemon Tea Cookies from the My Madison Bistro blog. Bright, delicate, and lovely with tea. The second was Snowball Cookies from the Cooking Classy blog, and the moment I saw them I knew.

They were round, they were pale, and they were dusted in powdered sugar until they genuinely looked like snowballs. That is winter magic on a baking sheet, and I could not resist it.

I chose the Snowball Cookies, and it was the right call for my family. It is the recipe I come back to every holiday season, and it is the one my kids now ask for by name before the calendar even flips to December.

If you are the kind of baker who plans a cookie tray weeks in advance, you will understand the feeling. Choosing the recipe is half the fun. The other half is watching everyone reach for the same cookie again and again, and pretending you did not notice.

Coconut Snowball Christmas Cookie Recipe

Once the decision was made, the actual baking turned out to be simple and quick. There is nothing fussy here. No chilling the dough for hours, no rolling pins, no decorating bags. You cream, you mix, you scoop, you bake, and you roll.

My kitchen filled with the smell of sweet cookie dough within minutes, which is honestly one of my favorite parts of holiday baking. That warm, buttery scent drifting through the house tells everyone that something good is on the way, and soon there is a small crowd hovering near the oven.

Then came my one small twist. The snowball cookie dough was already white, which made it the perfect canvas for coconut. Coconut is a favorite flavor of mine, and it fit the snowy theme so naturally that adding it felt obvious.

One cup of finely shredded coconut went into the dough, and it made the cookies even better. The flavor became a little more interesting, still completely holiday appropriate, and a touch more special than the plain version I started with.

The final step is the one that sells the whole illusion. While the cookies are still warm, they get rolled in powdered sugar. Then, once they have cooled completely, they get rolled a second time for a generous coat. That double roll is what makes them look like real snowballs instead of plain little cookies.

Here is the part that still makes me laugh. Half of them were eaten while they were still warm. My family stood around the cooling rack, claiming they were only testing one, and then testing another, and then testing a third. By the time I turned around, the tray had a very suspicious empty space in the middle.

That is exactly why I already know more Christmas cookie baking is in my future this month. A recipe that disappears this fast never makes just one batch. I have learned to double it and keep a few tucked away in the back of the pantry.

Ingredients

This recipe makes 25 cookies, and everything you need is a pantry staple for most home bakers. Here is the full list.

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup finely shredded coconut
• 2 cups powdered sugar, for coating

A couple of notes before you start. Softened butter matters, so take it out of the refrigerator ahead of time and let it come to room temperature.

Cornstarch is a quiet helper in this dough, and it is part of what gives these cookies their soft, tender bite. Finely shredded coconut blends into the dough better than large flakes, so keep an eye on the label when you shop.

Also notice that powdered sugar appears twice in the list. The 2/3 cup goes into the dough, and the separate 2 cups are for rolling the baked cookies. Keep them in separate bowls and you will not mix them up halfway through. I learned that one the hard way, with a dough that turned out sweeter than I planned.

Tip: Set out your butter early. Soft butter creams smoothly, and the whole dough comes together faster when you are not fighting a cold stick of butter.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking pan with baking paper and set it aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter on medium speed until creamy.
3. Add 2/3 cup powdered sugar and the salt, then mix well.
4. Add the vanilla, cornstarch, and finely shredded coconut.
5. Continue mixing on low speed while gradually adding the flour, and mix until evenly combined.
6. Scoop 1 Tbsp of dough at a time and roll it into a ball, then place the balls on the lined baking paper.
7. Bake for about 16 to 18 minutes, until the bottoms get a light golden color.
8. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes. While the cookies are still warm, roll them in powdered sugar, then let them sit on a wire rack to cool completely. Roll them in powdered sugar once again to coat them generously.

The scooping step is where a small cookie scoop earns its keep. One tablespoon portions keep every cookie the same size, which means they all finish baking at the same time. Roll each portion between your palms until it is smooth and round, then space them out on the lined pan.

Watch the bottoms, not the tops. These cookies stay pale on top, so the light golden color on the underside is your best signal that they are done. Pull them out while they are still soft and they will keep that tender texture.

The double sugar roll is the step people skip, and it is the step that matters most. The first roll happens while the cookies are warm, so the sugar clings and melts slightly into the surface.

The second roll happens after they cool, giving you that thick, snowy finish. Set out two shallow bowls and you can work through the whole tray quickly.

Recipe details

Here is everything at a glance so you can plan your baking session.

And here is the nutrition information per cookie, based on 1 cookie.

These cookies are a natural fit for a holiday cookie tray, a cookie exchange, or a homemade gift. They travel well because they are sturdy little balls rather than fragile cutouts, and the powdered sugar coating means they look finished without any icing or sprinkles.

Store them in an airtight container so the coating stays neat and the cookies stay soft. If you are building a mixed tray, give these snowballs their own corner so the powdered sugar does not dust everything else.

One last thought. If your family is anything like mine, make a double batch. Between the warm cookies that vanish off the cooling rack and the ones that disappear from the tin, 25 cookies go faster than you expect. Happy holiday baking.

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Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies

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Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies Christmas Coconut Snowball Cookies are coconut cookies rolled in powdered sugar, and they melt in your mouth the second you bite into one. If you have ever watched a cookie tray empty out before dinner, you already know the kind of quiet power a small, snowy looking sweet can have.

• Total Time: 36 min
• Yield: 25 cookies 1x

Ingredients

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1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp cornstarch
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup finely shredded coconut
2 cups powdered sugar, for coating

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Instructions

1-Preheat oven to 350 degrees: Preheat oven to 350 degrees; lined a pan with baking paper and set aside
2-Mix butter on medium speed until creamy: Mix butter on medium speed until creamy in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment
3-Add 2/3 cup powdered sugar and salt,: Add 2/3 cup powdered sugar and salt, mix well.
4-Add in vanilla, cornstarch and finely shredded: Add in vanilla, cornstarch and finely shredded coconut.
5-Continue mixing on low speed gradually adding: Continue mixing on low speed gradually adding flour and mix until evenly combine.
6-Scoop 1 Tbsp dough at a time: Scoop 1 Tbsp dough at a time and roll into a ball, place balls on lined baking paper.
7-Bake about 16 – 18 minutes (until: Bake about 16 – 18 minutes (until bottoms get light golden color )
8-Remove from the oven, cool a few: Remove from the oven, cool a few minutes and while cookies are still warm roll them in powdered and let them on a wire rack to cool completely and then roll them in powdered sugar once again, to coat them generously.

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• Prep Time: 20 min
• Cook Time: 16 min
• Method: bake

Nutrition

• Calories: 192
• Sodium: 19.5
• Fat: 8.5
• Carbohydrates: 28.2
• Protein: 1.2
• Cholesterol: 25.4