Grinch Snowball Cookies
Even the grumpiest Grinch won’t be able to resist the cheer of these delightful Grinch Cookies! A festive twist on the classic snowball cookie recipe and one of our most popular Christmas treats of all time!
Grinch Christmas Cookies
The Grinch is one of my favorite Christmas movies ever! I think I’m not the only one because it’s a story that’s been re-made countless times!
Inspired by The Grinch, these Grinch Snowball Cookies are bright green with a red heart — they are sure to stand out on a party table! And they taste like the classic snowball cookies you love and treasure (maybe even better!)
Aren’t they super cute? I just love the red heart sprinkles!
Related: See my 10 best Grinch inspired recipes here!
What Are Snowball Cookies?
A traditional snowball cookie is a round shortbread cookie, filled with chopped pecans, and rolled in powdered sugar.
My Granny always makes snowball cookies for Christmas, so they hold a special place in my heart. Even though as kids we love hyper-sweet treats, at Christmas time we gravitated towards these more subtly flavored classics.
These Grinch Snowball Cookies are just like the holiday favorite from all of our childhoods — but with a fun and festive twist!
Our Grinch Snowball cookies add dried cranberries to the mix and bright Christmas colors. Plus we found these awesome red heart sprinkles that are just perfect!
There are a lot of recipes for Grinch cookies that use cake mix, but if you’re looking for Grinch cookies without cake mix, then these Grinch Snowball cookies are just the thing!
For your convenience in re-creating our Grinch Cookies, I’ve included shop-able links to some of the supplies and kitchen tools used to make them. Disclosure policy available here.
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla Extract
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3-5 drops green food coloring
- 1/2 cup Chopped pecans
- 1/3 cup Dried cranberries
- Wilton jumbo heart sprinkles
- White chocolate melting wafers
Kitchen Supplies Used:
Instructions
To Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare a baking sheet with non-stick spray or a silicone baking mat.
Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla in a stand mixer or bowl using an electric hand mixer, until fluffy.
Gradually add in flour, salt, and food coloring until your batter is well combined and a rich green color. We found that kneading by hand was the easiest way to evenly distribute the green color. Wearing gloves prevents the hands from staining.
Stir in the dried cranberries and chopped pecans with a spatula or wooden spoon or work into the dough by hand.
Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place the cookie dough balls on baking sheet(s). A cookie scoop is helpful for portioning the dough evenly and then you can shape dough by hand.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, keeping a close eye on them so you can remove from oven before they start to brown.
When cookies are cool enough to handle, roll each in a small bowl of powdered sugar, until well coated.
Use melted white chocolate to attach a large red heart sprinkle on top of each cookie and allow to set.
Prep Tips
- Red Hearts – You can find jumbo red heart sprinkles on Amazon or in the baking section at many craft stores. Alternatively, you can use red candy melts to pipe your own red hearts on top of each cookie. I’ll explain how we did it in the FAQ section below.
- Storage – These Grinch snowball cookies can last for up to a week in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also freeze them for up to 2-3 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Many Days Ahead Can You Make Cookie Dough?
You can prepare the cookie dough up to 3 days ahead of time. Once you’ve made the dough, wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated until you’re ready to bake.
You can also freeze the dough ahead of time. The day before you’re ready to bake, move the ball of dough from the freezer to the fridge to thaw.
How Do You Get Decoration To Stick On Cookies?
If you’re having any trouble getting your read heart sprinkles to stick to the cookies, here are a couple tips:
- Make sure the cookies are completely cooled first. If the cookies are warm, they will melt the chocolate that you’re using as the “glue” for the sprinkles. If you’re making your own red hearts using candy melts, a warm cookie will keep the candy decoration from sticking.
- Make sure that you’re using plenty of melted chocolate to attach your red heart sprinkles and press gently until they begin to set in place.
How to Make Your Own Red Heart Decorations?
While the red heart sprinkles are the easiest way to decorate, you can create your own hearts too!
What you’ll need:
- Red candy melts -OR-
- White chocolate and red food coloring
Here’s what to do:
- Melt the chocolate or candy melts. If using white chocolate, stir red food coloring into it until you have a rich red color.
- Scoop into a plastic decorating bag with fine tip.
- Use the melted chocolate to draw hearts onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Place the cookie sheet into the freezer for about 10 minutes to harden.
Now you can use your candy hearts to decorate your cookies!
Related: Be sure to check out our Grinch Jello Shots too! (For grown-ups!)
More Grinch Recipes To Try:
- Grinch Snowball Cookies
- Homemade Grinch Marshmallows
- Grinch Jello Shots
- Easy Grinch Cupcakes
- Grinch Hot Cocoa Bombs
- Grinch Gingerbread Sandwich Cookies
- Grinch Punch
Grinch Cookies Recipe (Printable Copy)
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Grinch Cookies - Christmas Snowball Cookies
Equipment
- hand mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Cookie sheet
- Silicone baking mat
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted sweet cream butter
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar (plus 1 cup for rolling cookies)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3-5 drops green food coloring
- 1/2 cup pecans chopped
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries chopped
- 24 pieces red confetti heart sprinkles
- 1/4 cup white chocolate wafers melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a standing mixer, cream softened butter, sugar, and vanilla extract. Gradually mix in flour, salt, and food coloring until your batter is well-combined and a rich green color.
- Stir in chopped pecans and cranberries until evenly distributed.
- Form dough into 1 inch balls and place onto a prepared baking sheet (or two baking sheets depending on how large they are).
- Bake cookies for 10 - 12 minutes. Remove from oven before they start to brown.
- Allow cookies to cool enough to handle, then roll each in a small bowl of powdered sugar until fully coated.
- Use melted white chocolate to secure a red heart sprinkle to the top of each cookie.
- Allow cookies to cool completely and chocolate to set before serving or storing.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
CLICK HERE to see all of our holiday recipes on the Soccer Mom Blog!
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Want More Christmas Cookie Ideas?
Click here to see ALL of our favorite Christmas Cookies Recipes!
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Hi! I am also a soccer mom of 5 and new to your blog. I am so excited to find new cookie recipes for the holidays! I have a question regarding your Grinch cookie…could I substitute almonds for the pecans and have the texture/consistency come out right?
Any thoughts you have are much appreciated!
I think that would be ok!
One place it says, 2 1/2 cups flour, and in the other place it says 2 1/4 cups flour
Which one is right???
Hi Erika, good catch! I just double checked the recipe and it is 2 1/4 cups flour.
Needed to add about 2 T. of milk to moisten enough for the very dry batter to accept and incorporate the green color.
I haven’t eaten a cookie yet, but I think it will be okay. Fingers crossed.
These look cute but turned out very crumbly.
Can you use an alternative ingredient for the cranberries ? Allergy .
You could use another type of dried fruit that is not a concern – are dried cherries ok? You could also omit them or switch them out with something different like white chocolate chips.
Any way to make these gluten free?
I bet you could make them with gluten-free all purpose flour. And of course, check packaging on the other ingredients if cross-contamination is a concern. Let me know if you try it!