Pecan Pie Cookies

Pecan pie cookies on a platter.

These pecan pie cookies are EXTRA. Extra rich, extra flavorful and utterly delectable. A buttery brown sugar cookie filled with a simple pecan pie filling and sweet glaze. They’re genuinely the best pecan cookies you’ll ever have, and I’m giving you all my tips so YOU GET THE ACCOLADES for this pecan cookie recipe.

This pecan cookie recipe came from my cousin, Katrina, who has made them every holiday season for 20 years.

They are, without a doubt, the best pecan pie cookies you’ll ever taste because of the extra sprinkle of flaky sea salt and the sweet bourbon glaze.

Those two additions add a delightful sweet-salty contrast and depth of flavor, taking these Thanksgiving holiday cookies to the next level.

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Why you’ll love this recipe:

  • They are the cookie form of bourbon pecan pie.
  • You can make the pecan cookie dough in advance (it freezes well).
  • They’re easy to make and the kids can help with rolling the dough into balls and decorating.
  • Pecan pie cookies are a fantastic holiday food gift for teachers, neighbors and friends.
  • Great for holiday cookie swaps and parties.

Ingredients:

  • Brown Sugar – I used light brown sugar for a soft, subtle sweetness. Avoid dark brown sugar as the molasses would be the dominant flavor in the pecan cookies.
  • Room Temperature Butter – I recommend unsalted butter for baking, particularly for this recipe, which adds additional salt as a garnish – and you don’t want the cookies to be overly salted.
  • Egg – An egg makes the dough tender.
  • Vanilla – I recommend a double-strength vanilla (we get ours from Penzey’s online – not an affiliate, just a fan).
  • Baking Powder – prompts the dough to spread up and out through pressure from carbon dioxide. Do not substitute baking soda, as there is no acid to activate it in this recipe.
  • All Purpose Flour – I use King Arthur’s unbleached all-purpose flour for all of my baking.
  • Salt – Use regular iodized salt for the pecan pie cookie dough.
  • Chopped Pecans – I buy my pecans in bulk at Costco (a big 8-cup bag) and keep them in the freezer to prevent the oils from going rancid too quickly.
  • Heavy Cream – The cream does double duty in this pecan cookies recipe, used in both the pecan pie filling as well as the bourbon glaze.
  • Sea Salt – I recommend a good, flaky sea salt for its large, crystallized flakes and crunchy texture (I used Maldon sea salt). It also gives a salty bite to the pecan cookies and enhances their sweetness.
  • Powdered Sugar – a.k.a. confectioner’s sugar or 10x sugar for the glaze.
  • Bourbon – You don’t need a lot of whiskey for the glaze, just two tablespoons, to give the pecan pie cookies a sophisticated finish.
Using a cookie scoop to portion the dough.

Directions:

  1. Use a hand mixer to cream the butter and brown sugar together. Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined.
  2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together and add half the dry ingredients to the sugar mixture. Beat until combined, then repeat with the remaining flour mixture.
  3. Shape the dough into 1¼” balls and place 2″ apart on a silpat or parchment-lined cookie sheet.
  4. Form a divot or well into the center of each pecan cookie dough ball and transfer the baking sheet to the refrigerator to chill for 20 minutes.
  5. While the dough chills, assemble the pecan pie filling by combining the pecans, remaining brown sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. Stir to combine.
  6. Spoon the pecan pie filling into the cookies and bake for 10-12 minutes in a 350°F oven.
  7. While the cookies bake, make the bourbon glaze by combining the powdered sugar, cream and bourbon in a small bowl and whisking until smooth.
  8. Once the pecan pie cookies have baked, let them cool for 2-3 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to dry completely.
  9. Drizzle the cooled pecan cookies with the bourbon glaze and let them dry until set.

Pro-Tips:

  • For the cookies to bake evenly and come out at the same time, the balls of dough need to be equal in size. I recommend using a small cookie scoop (affiliate link) that portions 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon of dough.
  • My cousin, Katrina, uses her thumb or knuckle to make the divot into balls of pecan cookie dough; however, I’ve found that using the rounded base of a 1-teaspoon measure yields perfectly formed depressions in the dough.
  • To prevent the spoon from sticking to the dough when forming the cleft, lightly spray it with vegetable spray.
  • Chilling the dough before baking will inhibit the spread and give your pecan pie cookies a distinctive “well.” If you can’t wait to chill them, know that the cookies will be flatter than pictured here.

Variations:

  • If you don’t want to use alcohol, feel free to skip the bourbon, just add an additional tablespoon of cream to the glaze.
  • Conversely, you can also use other liquors to give the pecan pie cookies a slightly different flavor. Swap the bourbon for whisky, rum, Grand Marnier or Cointreau, Frangelico, Kahlua, or Amaretto.
  • Add two tablespoons of flaked coconut to the pecan pie filling for a chewy, tropical note.
  • Try it with other nuts, such as walnuts, almonds, pistachios or macadamias.
Spooning the pecan pie filling into the hollowed out cookie dough.

Storage and Freezing:

  • Make the dough up to 5 days in advance and keep in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake.
  • You can make the dough up to two months ahead of time to freeze until you’re ready to bake the cookies. Wrap the dough ball with cellophane and freezer paper; defrost completely before assembling the pecan cookies.
  • Because the pecan pie cookies have a filling and glaze, it’s best to store them in an airtight container, separated by layers of parchment paper to protect their integrity.
  • Baked cookies can be kept on the counter in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
  • Freeze the baked and decorated cookies well-wrapped or in a freezer-safe container for up to two months.
The filled pecan pie cookies ready to bake.

FAQ’s

Are pecan pie cookies the same as pecan tassies?

Pecan pie cookies are cookies filled with a pecan pie-type filling. Pecan tassies are more like mini pecan pies, using pie dough and pecan pie filling.

Can you make Thanksgiving holiday cookies for Christmas and other times of the year?

These easy pecan pie cookies are delicious at all times of the year, and since you can stash the dough in the freezer, there’s no excuse not to make them whenever you’re in the mood.

Is this a Southern recipe?

Pecans are a Southern crop. Therefore, it’s likely that this is a Southern pecan pie cookie recipe.

Baked pecan cookies on a baking sheet.

How do they taste?

You will LOVE these pecan cookies. The base is lightly sweet, buttery and soft (not hard or crumbly). The crunchy pecan filling has a maple quality punctuated by the flaky sea salt sprinkled on top, and you can taste the bourbon in the glaze. However, it’s not overpowering. Just a nice accent to the combination of flavors.

What our tasters said:

I never thought I would like pecan cookies as much as I like these. The flavors keep morphing from bite to bite. These are my new favorite.

Jennifer

Let the cookies sit on a wire rack.

What to serve with pecan pie cookies:

These buttery pecan bourbon cookies have a sweet-slightly salted flavor, which makes them irresistible with a glass of ice-cold milk.

They’re also delicious with:

  • Hot Coffee
  • Hot Tea
  • Warm Cocoa
  • A dram of bourbon
  • Port or Sherry
  • Hot Buttered Rum
Serving pecan pie cookies with milk.

More pecan cookies you’ll love:

Thanksgiving holiday cookies on a plate.

More holiday cookies you might like:

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A plate of pecan pie cookies with a glass of milk.
Print Pin
4.34 from 9 votes

Pecan Pie Cookies

The best pecan pie cookies have a sprinkle of sea salt and a heavenly bourbon glaze. These cookies will fly out of the cookie jar.
Author: Lisa Lotts
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword bourbon, christmas cookies, cookies, pecan
Dietary Restrictions Vegetarian
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 36 cookies

INGREDIENTS:

FOR COOKIE DOUGH:

  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ¾ cup butter , softened
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 cups flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt

FOR PECAN FILLING:

  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • sea salt for sprinkling

FOR BOURBON GLAZE:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons bourbon
  • 1 tablespoon heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:

  • Cream the ¾ cup butter and 1 cup brown sugar in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Add 1 egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix to combine.
  • In a smaller bowl, combine the 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt; whisk them together.
  • Add half of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until flour is incorporated. Add the remaining flour and mix until just combined.
  • With your clean hands, shape the dough into 1¼” balls and place 2″ apart on a cookie sheet.
  • Spray the back of a rounded teaspoon with vegetable spray (to prevent the spoon from sticking in the dough) and make an indentation in the pecan pie cookie dough.
  • Transfer the formed pecan cookies to the refrigerator, and chill the dough for 20 minutes or until firm. (This will help the cookies hold their shape).
  • Preheat the oven to 350°—line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  • In a medium bowl, add the 1 cup chopped pecans, ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla for the filling. Stir to combine and set aside.
  • Add one teaspoon of the pecan filling to the indentation. Sprinkle cookies with a pinch of sea salt. Bake for 8-12 minutes.
  • Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack.
  • Mix the 1 cup powdered sugar 2 tablespoons bourbon, and 1 tablespoon heavy cream in a small bowl and stir until smooth and creamy.
  • Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cookies. Let the cookies sit until the glaze dries, and store them in an airtight container, separated by parchment paper.

NUTRITION:

Calories: 137.4kcal | Carbohydrates: 18.13g | Protein: 1.23g | Fat: 6.75g | Saturated Fat: 3.13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.82g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2.35g | Trans Fat: 0.16g | Cholesterol: 17.05mg | Sodium: 79.58mg | Potassium: 36.13mg | Fiber: 0.45g | Sugar: 12.38g | Vitamin A: 156.74IU | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 20.37mg | Iron: 0.5mg

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18 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Gourmet Chef here! Stumbled across this cookie recipe a couple years ago and have been holding on to it. This year, I finally went ahead and made a double batch of these for Christmas. HOLY SMOKES. This is hands down the ONLY cookie recipe anyone would ever need to impress family and friends. I’ve shared your recipe with so many people and they all loved it. Thanks so much! <3

  2. 5 stars
    I’ve made this recipe twice now this holiday season and it’s one of the best cookie recipes I’ve ever tried. Rave reviews from the family too!

  3. Diana Ripepi says:

    5 stars
    These are great! I have made 2 batches, they made me look like a superstar! Thanks! Definitely going into my regular recipe box!

    1. That’s ’cause you ARE a superstar! Enjoy!

  4. 5 stars
    These cookies are always a favorite each year. Your version look great too with the sea salt! Yum! I can’t wait for my baking day!

    1. Thank you for sharing your recipe, Katrina! I can’t wait for your baking day too!!! Cookies!

  5. I love these cookies and love Katrina’s baking obsession. 😉 I may actually try to make them myself this year! Thanks for the easy to follow instructions, Lisa!

    1. It is an obsession, right? I call her the Pastry Dominatrix!

  6. The sticky bourbon filling….I can’t even deal with how much I’m drooling over this recipe! This is like the most genius combination of pecan tarts and chocolate chip cookies. DYING over these!

    1. LOL! Don’t die — just make a batch! My favorite part (aside from the bourbon — priorities, right?) is the flakes of sea salt – eye opening!

  7. mylifecookbook says:

    Great pics! I love cookies but these sound out of this world!

  8. Nice touch with the bourbon. Then, there IS the heavy cream and pecans…. : )

    1. More power to you Sue! I give all you Baking Divas props!