Lime-Glazed Coconut Snowballs
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 21, 2007
Time
1 hour, plus 20 minutes cooling and 20 minutes setting
Yield
Makes about 40 cookies
Ingredients
Butter Cookie Dough
1 teaspoon grated lime zest 2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)¾ cup superfine sugar (5 ½ ounces/156 grams)¼ teaspoon table salt 16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into sixteen ½-inch pieces, at cool room temperature (about 65 degrees)2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperatureGlaze
1 tablespoon cream cheese, at room temperature3 tablespoons lime juice 1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar (6 ounces/170 grams)1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut, pulsed in food processor until finely chopped, about fifteen 1-second pulses
Before You Begin
If you cannot find superfine sugar, you can obtain a close approximation by processing regular granulated sugar in a food processor for about 20 seconds.
Instructions
- In bowl of standing mixer fitted with flat beater, mix flour, lime zest, sugar, and salt on low speed until combined, about 5 seconds. With mixer running on low, add butter 1 piece at a time; continue to mix until mixture looks crumbly and slightly wet, about 1 minute longer. Add vanilla and cream cheese and mix on low until dough just begins to form large clumps, about 30 seconds.
- Use hands to roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake one batch at a time in 375-degree oven until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
- Whisk cream cheese and 2 tablespoons lime juice in medium bowl until combined and no lumps remain. Whisk in confectioners' sugar until smooth, adding remaining lime juice as needed until glaze is thin enough to spread easily.
- Dip tops of cookies into glaze and scrape away excess, then dip into coconut. Set cookies on parchment-lined baking sheet; let stand until glaze dries and sets, about 20 minutes
for the cookies
for the glaze
Time
1 hour, plus 20 minutes cooling and 20 minutes settingYield
Makes about 40 cookiesIngredients
Butter Cookie Dough
1 teaspoon grated lime zest
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
¾ cup superfine sugar (5 ½ ounces/156 grams)
¼ teaspoon table salt
16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into sixteen ½-inch pieces, at cool room temperature (about 65 degrees)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
Glaze
1 tablespoon cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar (6 ounces/170 grams)
1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut, pulsed in food processor until finely chopped, about fifteen 1-second pulses
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Butter Cookie Dough
1 teaspoon grated lime zest
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
¾ cup superfine sugar (5 ½ ounces/156 grams)
¼ teaspoon table salt
16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into sixteen ½-inch pieces, at cool room temperature (about 65 degrees)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
Glaze
1 tablespoon cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar (6 ounces/170 grams)
1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut, pulsed in food processor until finely chopped, about fifteen 1-second pulses
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Butter Cookie Dough
1 teaspoon grated lime zest
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
¾ cup superfine sugar (5 ½ ounces/156 grams)
¼ teaspoon table salt
16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into sixteen ½-inch pieces, at cool room temperature (about 65 degrees)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
Glaze
1 tablespoon cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar (6 ounces/170 grams)
1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut, pulsed in food processor until finely chopped, about fifteen 1-second pulses
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
In our search for a holiday cookie recipe that would yield cookies sturdy enough to decorate yet tender enough to eat, we started with the fat and found the right amount of butter to give the cookies great flavor without making them greasy. We used all-purpose flour in our holiday cookie dough recipe because it gave the dough enough gluten to provide structure. Superfine sugar gave our cookies a fine, even crumb. A surprise ingredient—cream cheese—added flavor and richness to our Lime-Glazed Coconut Snowballs without altering the texture of the cookies.
Before You Begin
If you cannot find superfine sugar, you can obtain a close approximation by processing regular granulated sugar in a food processor for about 20 seconds.
Instructions
- In bowl of standing mixer fitted with flat beater, mix flour, lime zest, sugar, and salt on low speed until combined, about 5 seconds. With mixer running on low, add butter 1 piece at a time; continue to mix until mixture looks crumbly and slightly wet, about 1 minute longer. Add vanilla and cream cheese and mix on low until dough just begins to form large clumps, about 30 seconds.
- Use hands to roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake one batch at a time in 375-degree oven until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
- Whisk cream cheese and 2 tablespoons lime juice in medium bowl until combined and no lumps remain. Whisk in confectioners' sugar until smooth, adding remaining lime juice as needed until glaze is thin enough to spread easily.
- Dip tops of cookies into glaze and scrape away excess, then dip into coconut. Set cookies on parchment-lined baking sheet; let stand until glaze dries and sets, about 20 minutes
for the cookies
for the glaze
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