Two of our favorite people are getting married this weekend. Susan - who works with me at the UA Honors College - and John. They are two of the kindest, smartest people we know, and they have such varied interests, too. It is so much fun to share a table with them!
When they started planning their weddings (yes, weddings plural), I asked what I could do to help. The first wedding will be today in Susan's hometown of State College, Pennsylvania, with all her family by her side. Everything is taken care of on that front.
Because many of her and John's friends live here in Tucson - about 2,500 miles away from her hometown - they are having a second ceremony here. It will be the perfect second wedding for them... out in the Sonoran Desert they both love so much, surrounded by birds and cool animals that they love to watch, and with a table filled to capacity with desserts, which they love to eat.
This second wedding will be officiated by Patricia, the Dean of the Honors College - and I can't think of a more loving, caring, and kind person to send them on their way together. I might have to cry...
Back to that table filled with desserts. That is where I come in. I offered to help make some of the desserts so that they could have exactly what they wanted.
My two offerings will both be seen here on Cocoa & Lavender - individual Cuatro Leches Cakes and, for today's post, Mexican Wedding Cakes.
Mexican Wedding Cakes are known in many forms around the world... Russian Tea Cakes, is the name I grew up with. But Snowballs, Butterballs, and Norwegian Walnut Balls are names also used. And those are only the ones I know of! I imagine every cuisine has a cookie like this... the only difference between them seems to be the type of nut used.
My mother used pecans or almonds, while I know many use walnuts. For these cookies today, I used Arizona-grown pecans; that seemed appropriate for their Arizona wedding.
Basically, they are a very tender shortbread with ground nuts. Some people use coarsely ground nuts, but I prefer them finely ground, as I think it gives them the best texture.
This recipe is an adaptation of several I found online. They go beautifully with a cup of Mexican hot chocolate, which is exactly how we ate the test batch last evening under the stars.
~ David
Mexican Wedding Cookies
16 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup plus ¾ cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
4 ounces pecans, finely ground
Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add ½ cup powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until well blended. Beat in flour, then mix in ground pecans to form a stiff dough. Divide dough in half; form each half into disk. Wrap separately in plastic; chill until cold - about 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Working with half of chilled dough, scoop level tablespoonfuls of dough (about ½ ounce for each cookie), then quickly roll them into balls. Arrange balls on heavy large baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing ½ inch apart. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake cookies until golden brown on bottom and just pale golden on top, about 18 minutes. Cool cookies 5 minutes on baking sheet.
Put remaining powdered sugar into a wide bowl, then gently toss warm cookies in sugar to coat completely. Transfer coated cookies to rack and cool completely.
Makes 48. Labels: butter, Mexican wedding cakes, Mexican wedding cookies, pecans, shortbread
