Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies
These cinnamon chocolate chip pecan cookies are made with brown butter, brown sugar, toasted pecans and cinnamon. They are super easy to make with no mixer needed!
Servings: 26 cookies
Calories: 178kcal
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all purpose flour measure carefully, avoid adding too much flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup brown sugar light or dark, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 13 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 egg yolk
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup chocolate chips semisweet or dark, plus a little more for decorating, optional or 170 grams chopped dark 70% chocolate
- ⅔ cup pecans toasted (optional) then chopped, plus more for decorating, optional
- flaky sea salt for topping, optional
Instructions
- Start by browning the butter. Place the butter in a medium, light-colored saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally as it melts. Once melted, keep stirring while it foams and bubbles, then watch as it slowly turns deep golden in color. Stirring helps prevent burning and lets you see the color change and the milk solids forming on the bottom. When the butter smells nutty and the bits on the bottom are golden to medium brown (not light or tan, but not black), remove from the heat and immediately pour into a large heatproof mixing bowl. Scrape in all the browned bits, then let the butter cool at room temperature for 15–20 minutes til no longer hot and just warm to the touch.
- Toast the pecans. Spread pecans in a single layer in a dry skillet over medium heat. When you can smell the pecans toasting, toss them by shaking the skillet. Toss and shake a few times to be sure they toast evenly. It should only take about 5 minutes to toast them. Nuts can burn easily, so make sure not to leave the nuts on the stove. Transfer them to a plate or paper towel to cool. Once cooled, roughly chop the pecans. If you are using chopped chocolate instead of chocolate chips, chop the chocolate now. Cut the chocolate into small chunks about 1/4 to 1/2 inch (0.5–1.5 cm).
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk to combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- Add the sugars to the slightly cooled butter. Whisk or stir to combine.
- Mix in the egg followed by the egg yolk and the vanilla.
- Stir in the dry ingredients in two additions. Stir until just combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips and chopped nuts. Do not overmix.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Chill at least 30 minutes. Chilling the dough will help the cookies keep their shape and will prevent too much spreading.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a medium cookie scoop (or form cookies using about 2 tablespoons or about 36 grams of cookie dough) to drop cookies on baking sheet. Place them 2 inches apart. Stick a couple of extra chocolate chips or toasted pecans on top of the cookie, if desired.
- Bake 9-11 minutes until edges are lightly golden. The tops should look set and no longer glossy but still soft. Remove from oven. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Video
Notes
Butter: Butter can be melted or browned. I recommend browning the butter for the most flavor. It's very important to let the butter cool til no longer hot but warm to the touch (but don’t let it re-solidify) before adding the sugars. If the butter is hot, it will melt and can melt the sugars.
Flour: Measure flour carefully. Fluff flour up first then spoon it into your measuring cup. Level it off with a knife. Avoid dredging your measuring cup in flour. This packs too much flour in. For most accurate results, measure flour with a kitchen scale. If you add too much flour, cookies can turn out too thick and dry.
Pecans: To make these cookies nut-free, leave out the pecans. You can also swap in almonds or walnuts for the pecans. For best flavor, I recommend toasting the pecans. Leave them whole so that they toast evenly. Chop after toasting. Toast them on the stovetop or in the oven. To toast nuts in the oven, spread nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 til you can smell the nuts and they look about a shade darker. This will take about 6-8 minutes. Nuts can burn easily, so be sure to keep a close eye on them. Transfer them to a plate to cool.
Flaky sea salt: Top cookie dough balls with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt just before or immediately after baking. This is optional, but it will enhance the flavor of the cookies.
Storage: Store these leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Freeze the baked cookies in an airtight for up to 30 days. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature for a few hours before eating.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 178kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 105mg | Potassium: 56mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 197IU | Vitamin C: 0.03mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 1mg
