Print

Classic Russian Tea Cookies: Easy Powdered Sugar Recipe

classic russian tea cookies - featured image
Print Recipe

These Classic Russian Tea Cookies with Powdered Sugar are tender, buttery, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Made with simple pantry ingredients, they come together in about 30 minutes and are perfect for holiday cookie swaps, tea parties, or any occasion.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup (2 sticks / 226g) unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup (60g) powdered sugar, plus more for coating
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (120g) finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
  2. Toast the nuts (optional but highly recommended): Spread the pecans or walnuts on a small baking sheet and toast them in the preheating oven for 3-4 minutes, until fragrant. Let cool completely, then chop very finely.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the ½ cup of powdered sugar and beat until light and fluffy, another 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  4. Beat in the vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
  5. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating on low speed until just combined. Do not overmix.
  6. Gently fold the finely chopped nuts into the dough with a rubber spatula until evenly distributed.
  7. Using a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop or your hands, roll the dough into 1-inch balls. Place them on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
  8. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies are set and the bottoms are just barely golden. The tops should still be pale.
  9. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack and let cool for another 5 minutes. They should still be warm, but not hot.
  10. Place about ½ cup of powdered sugar in a shallow bowl. While the cookies are still warm, gently roll each one in the powdered sugar until completely coated. Place the coated cookies back on the cooling rack.
  11. Once the cookies have cooled completely, roll them in powdered sugar again for a second coating.
  12. For a final dusting, give the cookies a light dusting of powdered sugar through a fine-mesh sieve just before serving.

Notes

Don’t overbake; cookies should be pale on top. Roll in powdered sugar while warm for best coating. Chop nuts finely to prevent cookies from falling apart. Use room temperature ingredients. Measure flour correctly using spoon-and-level method.

Nutrition

Keywords: Russian tea cookies, powdered sugar cookies, butter cookies, holiday cookies, easy cookie recipe, nut cookies

Find it online: https://bitesienna.com/classic-russian-tea-cookies-easy-powdered-sugar-recipe/