By Ellen Cawood

Kitchen Corner

This past weekend, my friends and I got together to celebrate my friend Blakelee’s upcoming wedding. The theme of this shower was “Blakelee’s last fiesta,” so you can imagine all of the cook Mexican food we had.

I make things like tacos and fajitas all the time, so I was not a bit worried about the entrée. What was challenging was coming up with a good Mexican dessert. I did quite a Pinterest search and found something easy and scrumptious. Not only was this recipe perfectly fitting for the occasion of a fiesta bridal shower, but it would be perfect to keep in your back pocket for upcoming holiday festivities to bring to Christmas parties or to give as gifts to your coworkers.

Mexican Wedding Cookies

Ingredients: 1 cup unsalted butter softened, 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, ½ a teaspoon of salt, 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of nuts of your choice, additional powdered sugar.

Instructions: Begin by preheating the oven to 375 degrees. Place nuts (I chose pecans) on a baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes. This simply enhances their flavor. After they have finished toasting, chop them finely. Combine butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt in a large mixing bowl and beat until creamy. Gradually add flour until ingredients are well combined. Add finely chopped nuts and use spatula to incorporate them so you avoid over mixing. Scoop a tablespoon of cookie dough and roll between your hands to form a ball, and place on a prepared baking sheet 1 inch apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until bottom of cookie is just starting to turn golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for an additional 10 minutes before rolling them through additional powdered sugar for an extra sweet coating!