brown butter pecan chocolate chip cookies
Trying not to slam-dunk your asses into fall, so we’ll slowly introduce the season with a fine little cookie.
Ever since my Bourbon Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, I’m beginning to scrounge up quite a hefty desire to bake with brown butter. It is a bit of a pain sometimes, granted, since the liquified texture oft changes the proportions of things within a baked good. But the taste – the nuttiness, depth, the caramel flecks of flavor ribboned throughout the treat in question.
More or less makes the adjustments worthwhile.
I assure you, the extra little step of browning butter in these tasty morsels amplifies the finished cookie immensely. Crunchy pecans mingle with chopped dark chocolate, and a blush of cinnamon lends a waft of autumnal flare into your house as they bake. If you’re not quite ready for a pumpkin punch in the nuts but are ready for a hint of the shifting season, look no further.
Honestly, I’m surprised I didn’t put bourbon in these. How uncharacteristic, because that’d have been a rad move on my end. Drat.
Brown Butter, Brown Butter, What Do You See?
Ya’ll remember that book, or am I showing my age?
Ahem…Start with just that, your brown butter. Pretty easy, just a little finicky, so you’ll have to keep your eye on the pot whilst it cooks.
Slap a stick of butter in a small saucepot, melt it down, and watch as it fizzles and foams and makes a whole lot of dramatic noises. Once it stops burbling, though, is when you’ll really need to watch for the color changing phenomenon. When a golden hue emerges, pull the pan off the heat. Let the butter cool at least 15-20 minutes on the counter, or longer if you have the time. Sometimes I’ll make the brown butter early in the morning and neglect it until I’m ready to bake.
Keep in mind the texture change will likely alter also the amount of flour you’ll need later.
Dough Man
Now, to your cookie dough! As straightforward as cookie doughs get, my dudes.
Cream your brown butter and another stick of regular softened butter with brown sugar and regular sugar. Beat in two eggs, one at a time, then some vanilla.
Mix in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. If the dough appears really sticky-wicky, add in another tablespoon or two of flour. Then fold in chopped pecans and lots of dark chocolate chunks (chips are good too). I just tend to enjoy a nice puddle of melted chocolate atop a cookie.
Scoop large two tablespoon-ish mounds of dough and roll into a ball. Set onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, being sure not to overcrowd your pans else you’ll have a single slab of cookie.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating your pan halfway through to ensure everything heats through as evenly as possible. You’ll know your cookies are good to go when the edges are set up, but the centers still soft and gooey.
Cool your cookies directly on the baking sheet. The residual heat will firm them up nicely. And yes, as always, the “cook time” in the recipe card is a sorta lie. You will likely need to bake these babies in batches. BUT, you can nibble on the finished cookies while you wait for the other ones. You’re the winner here, really.
Cookies store well at room temperature, covered, for up to 5 days, the fridge for a week, or the freezer for a few months. There is wiggle room, of course. Wink wink.
If you’re not quite over summer but part of you yearns for the crispness of fall, give these guys a whammy. Hard to say no to a fresh cookie, I’d imagine no matter the seasonality.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Gimme gimme mo’ (cookies):
Blueberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
Salted Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Coffee Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies
brown butter pecan chocolate chip cookies
Ingredients
- 2 sticks butter, softened
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1 1/2 cups chopped dark chocolate
- flaky sea salt, for serving
Instructions
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt one stick of the butter, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter browns, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for 15-20 minutes on the counter.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream both butters, brown sugar, and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Whip in the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until just combined. If the dough seems too sticky, add 1-2 tablespoons more of flour. Fold in the pecans and chocolate chunks with a spatula.
- Scoop 2 tablespoon sized mounds of dough and roll into a ball. Set onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheet pan halfway through. Cool on the baking sheet – the cookies will continue to set up.
- Serve warm, or keep covered at room temperature for up to 5 days, the fridge for a week, or the freezer for 3 months.
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