Gluten Free Almond Snowballs

If you have allergies to gluten and dairy, Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour is a good alternative to regular flour. Earth Balance Butter sticks work just like dairy butter in recipes making it easy to enjoy your favorites!  Today I am sharing with you a gluten free dairy free version of one of my family favorites, Almond Snowballs.  They are my take on a classic Christmas cookie, Russian Tea Cakes with the flavor of almond added to make them extra delicious!  They are so simple to make, the kids can even help you.

Author: Amy Lyons O’Neil

Amy has worked for Fresh and Natural Foods since 2006 contributing to the variety of healthful foods we offer. She graduated with a degree in studio art from Bethel University in 2007, but in her senior year of college, found that her passion was with the art of food. She later used her photography and culinary skills to create a vegan food and recipe blog, Fragrant Vanilla Cake. She has also written 3 cookbooks. She specializes in vegan and vegetarian recipes. Local, fresh and organic food has always been her focus in whatever she creates.

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Servings: 12 | Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Ready in: 45 minutes plus cooling time

Ingredients

• 2 sticks Earth Balance vegan butter, at room temperature
• 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tsp almond extract
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, plus more for rolling cookies
• 2 cups Bob's Red Mill all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup sliced toasted almonds

Instructions

First, cream butter in a large mixing bowl, beat in the vanilla and almond extracts, then slowly add the 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, and beat until light and fluffy. Add the flour and sea salt to the mixture, and mix until well combined, then add the almonds and mix well. Chill in the fridge until cold.

To bake, heat the oven to 325 degrees with the rack set at the center position. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until very lightly browned. Remove the cookies from the baking sheets and roll in powdered sugar while still hot. Cool on wire racks and roll cookies again in powdered sugar again when completely cool.