Mountain Cookies

#2

On the second day of Christmas treats I share with you - our mom's "Mountain Cookies"!  She used to make these all the time when we were little and we called them mountain cookies because - well - they look like snowy mountain tops. 

Okay, these are not the traditional wedding cookies, even though they look kind of like them.  We're not sure where our mom got the recipe, but we have never seen it anywhere before.  You might think it seems a little weird with dates and pecans, but trust us - they are sooooo good! We make these every Christmas and they are without a doubt one of our very favorites.

Ingredients:
1 c brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp allspice
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 TBS cinnamon
3/4 c margarine
1 tsp vanilla

2 1/4 c flour

18-24 pitted dates
pecans
powdered sugar

Instructions:
Mix first 8 ingredients on low speed for about 1 minute.
Add flour.
Slice dates open lengthwise and insert a pecan into each date.  Form dough around the date and roll into a ball. 
Place on cookie sheet.
Bake at 375* for 8-10 minutes.

(note: becaue the dates are more oval than round, they usually don't make a perfect ball-like cookie. They end up looking more like "mountains".) ;)

Remove from oven and let sit until mostly cool, then roll the cookies in powdered sugar. (It might take a couple coats of sugar.)

Enjoy!