Galletitas De Nuez (aka Mexican Wedding Cookies) are crunchy little cookies that melt in your mouth. The recipe is quick, simple and great for any occasion!
On this blog post I'll talk about the below subjects. Be free to click on anything you're interested on reading about or just skip it all and print the recipe!
- Origin of Mexican Wedding Cookies
- Step by Step on How to Make Mexican Wedding Cookies
- Video for Polvorones
- Cook's notes
- Print Recipe
Origin of Mexican Wedding Cookies
I call them Galletitas De Nuez (Pecan little cookies), you call them Mexican Wedding Cookies. They're pretty much the same thing. They're also known as Polvorones, Besitos de Nuez, Russian Tea Cookies, Snowball Cookies, Kurabia (In Ukraine) plus others I'm sure!
According to USA Today, the origin is not from Mexico. In their article they say "Food historians believe that it has its origins in medieval Arab cookery; the Middle East has a long tradition of rich special-occasion pastries using butter, honey, sugar, spices and nuts."
Their article is very interesting and I totally recommend you give it a read!
Step by Step on How to Make Mexican Wedding Cookies
- In a food processor, combine the pecans and ¼ cup sugar, and process until finely ground, about 30 seconds.
- Add remaining sugar along with flour, cinnamon, and salt, and pulse until evenly incorporated.
- Add butter and vanilla, and process until dough just comes together and you can form the balls. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water (1 at the time), and process again until you reach a more solid consistency.
- Shape dough into ½" thick balls (I use a small cookie dough scoop for sizing purposes) and place on a tray/plate that you can fit in the fridge. Chill cookies for 30 minutes.
- While the cookies chill in the fridge, preheat oven to 350°.
- Transfer balls to a parchment paper lined baking sheet, spacing them 2" apart.
- Bake the cookies, rotating baking sheet front to back halfway through baking, until lightly browned and set, about 14 to 17 minutes.
- Cool cookies for 5 minutes, and then place in bowl of confectioners' sugar; toss to coat evenly in sugar.
Video for Galletitas De Nuez
Cook's notes:
What's not to love about these addictive tasty treats! Follow these tips for successful cookies
- Do Not Overcook! The cookies are ready until they begin to set. Do not bake until they're completely firm. Otherwise, the cookies will be very hard once they cool off.
- Freezing Mexican Wedding Cookies: To freeze, place in an airtight container separating the layers with sheets of wax or confectioners paper. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then bring them to room temperature.
Then I gently rolled them in powdered sugar again to freshen them up. Cookies will keep up to 4 weeks. - These cookies are only 136 calories each! Easy to control the portions as they are small and rich in flavor. You only need a couple of them to satisfy your sweet tooth.
- The secret to keeping the powdered sugar on is to dredge the cookies while they're still slightly warm, so the powdered sugar gets melted and is a bit "tacky." Then allow them to cool fully. If needed, roll them again in powdered sugar. They will cover completely, they will look beautiful, and the sugar will stay on!
This recipe was originally published in April 2013. It was updated in November 2019 to revise the content and photographs. The original recipe remains the same. Enjoy!
I hope you get to make them and enjoy them with some tea or a tall glass of milk!
Be sure to follow @anafriasb on instagram and tag #muydelish with your photo! I’d love to see what you make! Be sure to leave a comment + rating if you make this recipe so I can see how you liked it!
Galletitas De Nuez (Mexican Wedding Cookies)
Ingredients
- ¾ cup pecans
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- 6 tbsp. unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract preferably Mexican
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine the pecans and ¼ cup sugar, and process until finely ground, about 30 seconds.
- Add remaining sugar along with flour, cinnamon, and salt, and pulse until evenly incorporated.
- Add butter and vanilla, and process until dough just comes together and you can form the balls. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water (1 at the time), and process again until you reach a more solid consistency.
- Shape dough into ½" thick balls (I use a small cookie dough scoop for sizing purposes) and place on a tray/plate that you can fit in the fridge. Chill cookies for 30 minutes.
- While the cookies chill in the fridge, preheat oven to 350°.
- Transfer balls to a parchment paper lined baking sheet, spacing them 2" apart.
- Bake the cookies, rotating baking sheet front to back halfway through baking, until lightly browned and set, about 14 to 17 minutes.
- Let cool for 5 minutes, and then place in bowl of confectioners' sugar; toss to coat evenly in sugar.
Notes
- Do Not Overcook! The cookies are ready until they begin to set. Do not bake until they're completely firm. Otherwise, the cookies will be very hard once they cool off.
- Freezing Mexican Wedding Cookies: To freeze, place in an airtight container separating the layers with sheets of wax or confectioners paper. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then bring them to room temperature.
Then I gently rolled them in powdered sugar again to freshen them up. Cookies will keep up to 4 weeks. - These cookies are only 136 calories each! Easy to control the portions as they are small and rich in flavor. You only need a couple of them to satisfy your sweet tooth.
- The secret to keeping the powdered sugar on is to dredge the cookies while they're still slightly warm, so the powdered sugar gets melted and is a bit "tacky." Then allow them to cool fully. If needed, roll them again in powdered sugar. They will cover completely, they will look beautiful, and the sugar will stay on!
These are so delicious! My hubby loved them!
is great
ABSOLUTLY LOVE THESE COOKIES,THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR RECIPE AND IT'S SO SIMPLE!
These sound yummy and I will try and make some soon, with and without nuts (I have a grandson allergic to nuts).
My recipe for Kipferle, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Russian Tea
Cookies, etc. call for 10X sugar in place of the sugar in your recipe. I've also seen some recipes call for roasting the pecans before grinding them, although the Kipferle recipe I grew up with did not call for this this. Whatever these cookies are called, they are "melt-in-your-mouth" deliciousness. My family made about 40 kinds of cookies for Xmas gifts to family friends, and this cookie has always been my favorite.
I also use the base recipe, without the pecans, and add miniature chocolate chips, to make a gourmet chocolate chip cookie. I use them on Venetian Tables I do for weddings, when I'm also making the wedding cake. After they are baked, instead of rolling them in 10X sugar, I drizzle them with melted chocolate chips. They are my second favorite cookie, and I'm not a great fan of chocolate. But, they also get rave reviews.
These are one of my favorite cookies, will have to try out your recipe!
Awesome! I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Thanks for stopping by!
Oh my! Awesome.. That absolutely makes me drool.=D
These are the most gorgeous looking cookies and they sound so delicious (and easy!) Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
Awe thanks Rosie! xo