Slightly sweet, buttery and chewy, these Butter Pecan Cookies make a great dessert to end any meal! From a holiday dessert to a summer cookout treat, these cookies are full of nutty, brown sugar flavor! With just a few common ingredients, they only take minutes to prepare!
Why You Will Love Butter Pecan Cookies
- CLASSIC – There is something about the mixture of these two flavors. But Butter and Pecan just have a classic, comfort food flavor that has a lot of nostalgia to it.
- EASY – With just a handful of common pantry ingredients and a couple minutes of prep, these cookies will be baking in your oven and filling your kitchen with the most delicious aromas!
- DELICIOUS – The smooth, creamy combination of sweet and savory, with the gentle crunch of the pecans are simply irresistible
Butter Pecan Cookies
These cookies taste so amazing because they have so many delicious flavors and textures that all come together so beautifully. The crispy outside and tender inside. They have those buttery, toasted and nutty flavors that come from the brown sugar, nuts and whipped butter. You absolutely just have to try them! For step-by-step instructions, check out the printable recipe card below. But here is what you’ll need to get started.
Butter Pecan Cookies Ingredients
- FLOUR – All purpose flour. You can use Gluten-Free Flour to if needed.
- SALT – Salt is always important to bake with. It balances the sweet flavors of any dessert.
- BAKING SODA – A leavening agent that gets these cookies their soft texture.
- BUTTER – Unsalted. It’s always important to get your butter softened to room temperature before baking with it.
- SUGAR – White, granulated sugar.
- BROWN SUGAR – make sure you are packing your brown sugar in the measuring cup as you scoop.
- EGG – Also, if possible, let your egg come to room temperature before adding it to this recipe.
- VANILLA EXTRACT – Always bake with a high quality vanilla extract.
- PECANS – You’ll need both crushed pecans and pecan halves for this recipe.
Can You Make Butter Pecan Cookies Ahead Of Time?
Yes! And since you will need to chill your dough for at least three hours, I recommend starting this recipe well before you will need them. It may even be a good idea to make the dough the day beforehand and let it sit in the fridge until you need it.
You can also make the dough, roll them into the balls and then freeze them. To do this, put the balls on baking sheets and “flash freeze” until they are hard and won’t stick together. Then you can store them in a freezer bag for up to 5 months. When you are ready to bake them, they just need an extra minute or two in the oven. You don’t even need to thaw them!
Do You Need To Toast The Pecans?
I did NOT toast my pecans before using them in this recipe. But I’ve seen other recipes that have and they do say it is worth the time/hassel. If you are up for it, go for it!
Can You Use Browned Butter?
You can use browned butter for this recipe if you’d like. It will add a toasty, nutty flavor to the cookies. We think they are delicious either way. What is the best way to brown butter? Simply cut the butter into even slices and put them in a pan over a medium heat. It’s best to use a lighter colored pan so you can see the color of the butter. Stir continuously until the milk solids start to turn brown. Immediately remove it from heat before it burns. You may lose some moisture during the process, so you may want to start out with a little more butter than what the recipe calls for.
Once your butter has browned, pour it into a heat safe dish and allow it to cool and solidify before adding it to the recipe.
Storage, Leftovers and Freezing
Store your cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They should stay good for up to 5 days. To help keep them soft, put a slice of bread in with them. You can also freeze butter pecan cookies. Simply let them cool to room temperature and put them in a freezer safe container, separated by parchment sheets.
Other Tips, Tricks and Variations
- BUTTER– One of the keys to this recipe is the butter. Make sure your butter is softened. And you really want to whip it up and get some air circulating in there. I actually whip the butter before I even put the sugar in. Then I add the sugars.
- ADD INS– If you want to liven this recipe up a bit, add some toffee bits into the mix!
- MORE SUGAR?– While I believe Brown Sugar is the star of this recipe, try rolling your dough balls in some granulated sugar before baking them. It will add a sparkle to the cookie!
- HOW TO KNOW WHEN THEY ARE DONE?– Bake these cookies until the edges are just starting to get to a golden brown. The center will still look soft and undercooked. That is OK! Take them out, they will continue to cook.
- ICE CREAM!– Serve these warm with some ice cream on top. Vanilla or even Butter Pecan flavored ice cream would be perfect! Or, make these into Butter Pecan Ice Cream Sandwiches. Let the cookies fully cool, soften the ice cream and form it into a filling between two cookies. Wrap them in parchment paper and put back into the freezer for at least one hour! You can sprinkle toffee chips around the outside for extra fun!
Tools To Help With This Recipe
We hope you enjoy this Butter Pecan Cookies Recipe! Let us know how it turns out for you in the comments section!
LOOKING FOR MORE COOKIE RECIPES? CHECK OUT:
- GLUTEN FREE KITCHEN SINK COOKIES
- OATMEAL REESE’S PIECES COOKIES
- CARROT COOKIES
- CRISCO CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- FUNFETTI CAKE MIX COOKIES
- MEYER LEMON COOKIES
Butter Pecan Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 stick butter softened (approximately ½ a cup)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
- 20-22 pecan halves
Instructions
- In a bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
- In a larger bowl, mix together butter and both sugars.
- Add egg into the sugar mixture and mix completely. Add vanilla and continue to mix.
- Slowly add dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until cookie dough forms.
- Fold chopped pecans into the cookie dough.
- Wrap cookie dough in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours (or more).
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll cookie dough into 1 inch spheres - about 12 should fit on a standard size cookie sheet.
- Place one pecan half on the top of each cookie ball.
- Bake for 9 to 11 minutes.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
While I believe Brown Sugar is the star of this recipe, try rolling your dough balls in some granulated sugar before baking them. It will add a sparkle to the cookie!
Bake these cookies until the edges are just starting to brown. The center will still look soft and undercooked. That is OK! Take them out, they will continue to cook.
Serve these warm with some ice cream on top. Vanilla or even Butter Pecan flavored ice cream would be perfect!
Or, make these into Butter Pecan Ice Cream Sandwiches. Let the cookies fully cool, soften the ice cream and form it into a filling between two cookies. Wrap them in parchment paper and put back into the freezer for at least one hour! You can sprinkle toffee chips around the outside for extra fun!
Nutrition
Comments & Reviews
Alma Delgado says
Awesome, need recipe for almond cookies