Butter Pecan Cookies
This is a simple and delicious recipe for soft and chewy butter pecan cookies, made with straightforward ingredients and packed with toasted pecans. It is very perfect for festive holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving!
Ingredients
For The Butter Pecans:
- 185 g chopped pecans
- 21 g butter
For The Butter Pecan Cookies:
- 227 g unsalted butter
- 287 g all-purpose flour (dip and sweep method)
- 14 g cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 99 g granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs (at room temperature)
- 198 g packed dark or light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
To Decorate (optional):
- Granulated sugar
- Sea salt
- Pecan halves
Instructions
For The Butter Pecans:
- To prepare sautéed pecans, begin by melting butter in a pan over medium heat, then add the chopped pecans. Cook for approximately 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently, until they are toasted and emit a fragrant aroma. Be cautious to prevent burning, as small pieces of pecan may brown faster. Once finished, remove from heat and allow the pecans to cool.
For The Butter Pecan Cookies:
- For a rich golden-brown butter, heat it in a pan with a light-colored surface over medium-high heat. Allow the butter to come to a boil, and stir it occasionally until the solids at the bottom turn a beautiful golden brown color. Be careful near the end as it can burn quickly. Once done, pour into a large mixing bowl to halt the cooking process and let cool for 10 minutes.
- In a bowl, mix the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt, using a whisk
- Mix the cooled browned butter with the sugars using a whisk. Next, incorporate the vanilla and eggs into the mixture and continue whisking until everything is thoroughly blended
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the bowl and stir until the mixture is evenly blended and no flour streaks are visible.
- Mix in the buttered pecans.
- Wrap the dough with plastic wrap, making sure it touches the surface. Refrigerate for a minimum of 3 hours, or for up to 3 days. If the dough has been chilled for more than 3 hours, allow it to come to room temperature for 30 minutes before scooping to make it easier to handle.
To Bake The Cookies:
- Adjust the oven temperature to 350°F and arrange a baking tray with parchment paper for a smooth baking experience.
- Shape the dough into 60g balls (approximately 3 tablespoons each) and place them 2 inches apart on the prepared sheet. Refer to notes for decorative options.
- Place the cookies on the middle oven rack and bake until the edges are firm and just starting to turn golden brown, taking 9-12 minutes. The centers of the cookies should be soft, but will firm up during cooling.
- In 5 minutes, extract the cookies from the baking sheet and relocate them to a cooling rack.
- To keep them fresh, put the cookies in an airtight container where they can be stored for a maximum of 5 days.