This recipe for maple walnut butterballs might be your new favorite holiday cookie! Easy, delicious and the perfect kitchen gift….pop them in a mason jar and tie a bow around the jar for the perfect scrumptious present.
Christmas cookie, oh Christmas cookie, how ever sweet you taste! Especially if you happen to be maple walnut butterballs, which are easy little concoctions just begging to be enjoyed with your favorite cup of Christmas tea. They are those delectable little melt in your mouth type of cookie, made with ground walnuts and butter and just enough maple syrup to sweeten them up. I promise that you won’t even mind when the powdered sugar that they are rolled in gets on your shirt, because the dreamy taste is all you will care about. Let’s make them!
[Tweet “This recipe for maple walnut butterballs might be your new favorite holiday cookie! “]These are the kind of cookie that you want to bake at a lower temperature just until they are baked through, kind of like the shortbread cookies I wrote about last week. (Yes, this is the time of year where it is just cookie after cookie after cookie in my house!)
[clickToTweet tweet=”This recipe for maple walnut butterballs might be your new favorite holiday cookie!” quote=”This recipe for maple walnut butterballs might be your new favorite holiday cookie!”]The dough comes together very quickly, and then you want to chill it in the fridge for a while so that it is firm enough to roll into adorable little balls. Once the butterballs are baked, roll them right away in that powdered sugar – I like to put the powdered sugar in a shallow soup bowl for maximum butterball rolling efficiency.
After that, all that’s left is the Eating Of The Cookies. If you have enough willpower to give some of them away, I like to pop them into a mason jar…the air-tight lid keeps the cookies nice and fresh for a few days. Although honestly, I can’t imagine them lasting a few days. A few hours is more like it, at least in my cookie-eating house.
So if holiday cookies are one thing that you haven’t yet crossed off of your to-do list, these maple walnut butterballs might be just the ticket!
PrintMaple Walnut Butterballs
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 40 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 cup walnuts, processed in the food processor until finely chopped
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 and line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Put butter into mixer and mix at medium high speed until creamed. Add syrup, followed by flour, salt and vanilla. Stir in walnuts.
- Chill the dough for at least one hour until firm. Scoop out dough to roll into 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheets. Bake for 40 minutes.
- As soon as the cookies are cool enough to handle roll them in the powdered sugar. If you like, you can give them another coating of sugar once they are totally cool. Make sure to save some for the cook!
Lisa Breton says
I was just wondering if these cookies need to be refrigerated. If not how long can they stay on the counter. I am planning on mailing a package so it would be a few days or longer in a box. Thanks.
They don’t! And they should be fine on the counter for a week or so – if they last that long! Merry happy everything to you too! ?
Bernie Moran says
Kate, I have a question….it says Butter…..is that salted or unsalted? I never know which one to get. I love your cookie recipes! Hope you have a wonderful Christmas!
Bernie
Bernie!! You can use either but I tend to use salted because I like that tiny hint of salt in cookie dough to cut the sweetness. Hope all is well with you and yours – xoxo!
Theresa M. says
Yeah, I have to make these with pecans because the bag of nuts in my freezer that I thought was walnuts is pecans. But I’m OK with that, because, pecans and maple are good buddies and will get along just fine in cookie form. And maybe a splash of bourbon will have to join the vanilla, just to keep things fun. It is Christmas after all. ;)
It IS! And everything is possible on Christmas. :)
Melanie @ Melanie Cooks says
I’ve never seen this kind of cookies, but they look amazing! You just can’t go wrong with ingredients like butter, maple syrup, sugar and walnuts :) I love the presentation in the mason jar, and how the jar has the word “Ball” on it – it was made for these yummy balls!
Thanks Melanie! I think I am putting them into my permanent holiday cookie rotation! :)
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says
I’ve never heard of butterballs before, so thank you SO much for introducing them to me! They look fabulous and I can totally see myself popping these babies, one after the other, right into my pie hole! Maple and walnut is a wonderful combination, but in a round like bite sized ball? Yes!!!! I’ll take a few dozen! Cheers, Kate! Hugs your way, I’ve been thinking about you and sending lots of love! Xo
Yes, these are definitely addictive – proceed with merry caution! I’ve been thinking about you too my friend – lots of hugs from me to you! xoxo
grace says
i would undoubtedly make a huge mess whilst making AND eating these, but trust me–that won’t stop me from doing either! :)
It’s the best kind of mess to make! :)
Pam Seipp says
Could you use ground almonds instead of walnuts?
You could! Any kind of ground nut would be okay – my Southern husband is waiting for me to make these with pecans!
Ann heath says
I’m making the pecan variation right now! Thanks for another great recipe, Kate.
Hi Ann! Hope you love them – have a wonderful holiday!!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says
Oh I’ve never heard of this cookie before, Kate! I’m definitely intrigued. Anything with maple is a winner in my book, so I have a feeling I would love these!
Isn’t maple the best? Love that flavor. :)
Mir says
These are quite literally my favorite kind of cookie. And then you added maple and now it’s my most ever completely mind-blowing favorite kind of cookie. I’m making these, Kate!
Oh Mir, I’m so glad!! Isn’t it the best thing when a cookie recipe has your name on it?