The holidays are here! Let's get things started with a classic and easy no bake recipe. These little coconut orange balls are packed with flavor and one recipe makes about 60 cookies, so they are ideal for your cookie exchanges or to have around at your family gatherings or holiday parties.
They're sweet, citrusy, a little nutty, and the coconut flakes add an interesting dimension to the texture.
I used orange juice concentrate and pecans in mine, but this is a very versatile recipe. You can use different flavored juice concentrates or different nuts to switch things up. You can click here to learn about the Orangina can.
I store mine in the refrigerator because it keeps them nice and firm and they are yummy a bit chilled. They'll hold their shape at room temperature just fine but they will soften as they sit out for longer periods of time.
Orange balls are a good way to kick off your Christmas baking! Gentle(wo)men, start your engines. Enjoy!
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Orange Coconut Snowballs
- Total Time: 5 mins
- Yield: 60 cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 1 12oz box vanilla wafer cookies (see notes)
- 1 ¼ cup pecans
- 2 cups coconut flakes (sweetened or unsweetened depending on your preference)
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¾ cup orange juice concentrate, mostly thawed (about 6 oz)
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse the vanilla wafers into a very fine crumb. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Pulse the pecans into a fine crumb and add to the bowl with the wafers. Finally, pulse the coconut until coarsely chopped and transfer to a separate shallow dish.
- Add the powdered sugar, orange juice concentrate, vanilla extract, and butter to the pecan and wafer crumbs. Using a hand mixer, mix until combined.
- Use a small cookie scoop to scoop dough and use your hands to form balls. Roll each ball in the chopped coconut and then place onto a cookie sheet. Chill until firm and then transfer to a container. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
If you can only find 11oz boxes of vanilla wafers, you can add 2-3 sheets of graham crackers to make up the difference. Alternatively, you can use an extra ⅓ cup of powdered sugar, but this will increase the sweetness of the recipe. Or you could buy two boxes to get the extra ounce of wafers and then make banana pudding with the rest. 😉
- Prep Time: 5 mins
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Frances
Everyone does not have a food processor. How to do the vanilla wafers without one?
Erin
You can place the cookies in a ziploc bag and use the flat side of a meat tenderizer to crush them.
Whitney
Is there a substitute for the orange juice concentrate? It’s not something I can find where I live, so wondering if something else might work.
Molly Ritchie
Do you know if these can be frozen and thawed for serving a couple of weeks later?
Erin
I haven't tried that myself, but I think that should be fine based on the ingredients. The only tip I have is if you roll in powdered sugar instead of coconut, I'd wait until after thawing to roll it because the powdered sugar will get gummy.
Angela
I love these so much, but I have a family member allergic to coconut. Do you have a suggestion for an alternative?
Erin
You could try rolling in crushed nuts or just powdered sugar would be fine!