This is the one recipe I make over and over again, and have done from the very first moment I tasted these cookies.
They are also the cookies I make as gifts year in and year out.
My mum found the recipe 'somewhere' and she is one of those people who names recipes according to the person who gave it too you, or who you make them for or with.
I grew up with thinking a particular dessert was called Vera's Dessert, turns out it wasn't.
So because my mum made these once with my niece for Christmas, they have been forever named, Jessica's Snowballs.
So here you have it, my all time favourite Christmas cookie.
Single handily responsible for the extra bumps and lumps on my hips and thighs, which is why I only ever eat them at Christmas.
Jessica's Snowballs
226 g of butter
(unsalted or salted- just omit the salt if using salted)
3 tablespoons of caster sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon of salt (or not if using salted butter)
2 cups of plain flour
3/4 cup of blanched, flaked almonds.
Icing sugar to roll and store the cookies in.
Set oven to about 180 degrees.
Set oven to about 180 degrees.
Cream the butter with the sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.
Sift your flour and salt together and blend into the creamed mixture.
Stir in the almonds.
Shape into the size of walnuts or mould into crescent shapes
I mould mine into crescent shapes, as you can see here.
Place onto an ungreased tray
I mould mine into crescent shapes, as you can see here.
Place onto an ungreased tray
(sorry about the bad photography my nice camera needs a new memory card, so I am relying on my iPhone)
Bake for about 15 minutes.
While they are still hot, but not straight away (this is a tricky thing to judge), lift them off the tray and very gently roll them in icing sugar, then place them back onto a rack to finish cooling.
I put my icing sugar on a flat plate or try for rolling.
This provides them with a yummy coating, that you won't appreciate until you are eating one.
I then store mine in a tin, smothered in icing sugar.
Only taking them out to gift or eat.
This is before adding the next layer.
Seriously I bury them, so it is like embarking on a snowy expedition to find one.
So there you have it my secret cookie recipe.
I hope you enjoy.
x
Maria, if these are the cookies that you gave us a gift of one christmas, then I am so glad you have shared the recipe. They were absolutely delicious and have a great texture - very more-ish:) Thank you.
ReplyDeleteP.S. of course it remains to be seen whether I can duplicate the deliciousness of yours :/
... well I give them as gifts fairly regularly. Unfortunately I don't know who tomorrowisanotherday ', so I couldn't say for certain :-)
ReplyDeleteThey are not terribly difficult which is why I make them- as they are pretty none fail once you get the tension right between when leaving them to harden slightly and rolling them in the icing sugar.
x