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healthier Russian tea cake with bite missing
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Healthier Russian Tea Cakes

These Russian tea cakes are tender and buttery. They seem to just melt in your mouth! This recipe uses whole wheat flour and less butter for Russian tea cakes that are delicious and better for you!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
Total Time27 minutes
Course: Dessert
Keyword: christmas, cookie, healthy, holiday, pecans
Servings: 28 cookies

Ingredients

  • 12 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt see notes for substitutions
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour or substitute all purpose flour
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans finely chopped

For rolling:

  • 1/3 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350ºF and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the Greek yogurt and vanilla extract and beat until smooth and combined.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk the whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, salt, and powdered sugar. Add to the butter mixture and use a spatula to stir until just combined. Then add the chopped nuts and stir until well incorporated. The dough will be slightly crumbly.
  • Form the dough into 1-inch balls by rolling scoops of dough between your hands. You may have to firmly smush the dough to get it to stay together. Place the dough balls on the lined baking sheets, leaving around 2 inches between each ball.
  • Bake the cookies for 12-16 minutes, or until the balls are just starting to turn golden brown on the bottom.
  • Remove from oven and allow to cool very briefly. Add 1/3 cup powdered sugar to a small bowl. While the cookies are still warm, roll them in the powdered sugar and transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. For a thicker coating of powdered sugar, roll the cookies again once they have cooled. Enjoy!

Notes

Greek yogurt is used to replace some of the butter in these cookies. You can use whatever type of Greek yogurt you like, including full fat Greek yogurt or nonfat Greek yogurt. If you don't have Greek yogurt, you can substitute cream cheese, sour cream, or unsalted butter.