Mexican Wedding Cookies

5 from 2 votes

Mexican Wedding Cookies are tender, buttery, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious! Packed with pecans and coated in powdered sugar, they’re a delicious treat.

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Chilling Time2

Total Time2 30

Course: Dessert, Snack, Vegetarian

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: Mexican wedding cookies

Servings: cookies

Author: Chelsea Lords

Cost: $2.31

Equipment

Stand mixer or hand mixer
Light-colored sheet pan
Silicone baking mat
Cooling rack

Ingredients

1/3 cup pecan halves
1 cup unsalted butter see note 1
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract see note 2
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Powdered sugar for coating the cookies

US - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread the pecans in an even layer on the sheet pan. Bake for 5–7 minutes or until they smell fragrant. Watch carefully; you don’t want to burn them. Remove and allow to completely cool before transferring them to a mini food processor or cutting board. Pulse or finely chop into very small pieces. Avoid over-pulsing in the food processor or you’ll end up with pecan butter.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or a large bowl (and using a hand mixer) combine butter and 3/4 cup powdered sugar. Cream together until smooth and creamy, about 3–4 minutes. Add in vanilla, salt, cornstarch, and pulsed/chopped pecans. Beat until smooth and combined. Add flour and mix until combined and smooth. It will seem sandy and crumbly at first, but keep mixing; it will come together. Once combined, do not overmix.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1–2 hours to chill.
After being chilled, measure out cookie dough using a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon (each ball should be exactly 1 tablespoon). If the dough gets overly warmed from being rolled or sitting in a warm kitchen, put in the freezer for 10–15 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a light-colored sheet pan with a silicone liner (see note 3). Bake 7–11 minutes (mine take 10 minutes). (It’s okay if some of the cookies bleed out on the edges and turn brown, this crumbles off easily when ready to roll in powdered sugar). Remove from oven, let stand on tray for 3–5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack. Let cool for 2–3 or so minutes.
Add powdered sugar to a bowl (I start with 1 cup, but you may need slightly more). Roll the warmed cookie in the powdered sugar, then return to the cooling rack. Let cool a few more minutes, then roll in the powdered sugar again.

Notes

Note 1: It’s important to use good-quality butter—not margarine. Use unsalted so you can control the salt amount. Make sure the butter is at room temperature, not melted or softened. One cup is the equivalent of 16 tablespoons or 2 sticks.

Note 2: I’ll sometimes use vanilla bean paste; 1 teaspoon of paste if using!

Note 3: I tested this recipe with no parchment paper, with parchment paper, and with a silicone liner. Cookies turned out best every time with the silicone liner. The darker the trays, the darker the bottoms of the cookies. The best results I found were with a light-colored tray.

Storage: Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Reroll in additional powdered sugar as needed. Best enjoyed within 1–3 days.

Nutrition