Russian Tea Cakes

  • Prep 60 min
  • Total 1 hr 15 min
  • Servings 48

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 1/4 cups Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup finely chopped nuts
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Powdered sugar

Steps

  • 1
    Heat oven to 400°F.
  • 2
    Mix butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl. Stir in flour, nuts and salt until dough holds together.
  • 3
    Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
  • 4
    Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set but not brown. Remove from cookie sheet. Cool slightly on wire rack.
  • 5
    Roll warm cookies in powdered sugar; cool on wire rack. Roll in powdered sugar again.

  • As with most Russian Tea Cake recipes, this one creates a nice firm dough that won’t spread during baking, so you can arrange them about 1 inch apart on the baking sheet. And like shortbread, they don't brown; when they’re done, they’ll be firm to the touch.
  • Similar cookies are called snowballs or a version that’s filled with rich pine nuts can also be called Mexican wedding cakes.
  • Wondering what makes tea cakes so rich and crumbly? Like other shortbreads, they have a high ratio of butter to flour, which makes them very tender—and so delightful to eat.
  • If you want to get creative, you can use different nuts in your Russian Tea Cakes. Cashews, hazelnuts, pecans or walnuts are fantastic choices. You’ll want to toast and finely chop them before you add them to the dough.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 Serving
Calories
75
Calories from Fat
45
Total Fat
5 g
Saturated Fat
1 g
Cholesterol
0mg
Sodium
55 mg
Potassium
15 mg
Total Carbohydrate
6 g
Dietary Fiber
0g
Protein
1 g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
4%
4%
Vitamin C
0%
0%
Calcium
0%
0%
Iron
2%
2%
Exchanges:
1/2 Starch; 1 Fat;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
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