ADVERTISEMENT
Butter Pecan Cookies have amazing praline flavor
Butter + pecans + brown sugar + milk = pralinesButter + pecans + brown sugar + cookie dough = the most amazing praline flavored Butter Pecan Cookie ever!
Browned butter adds nutty, toasty flavor
Browned butter adds a wonderful depth of flavor to these Butter Pecan Cookies. Because they’re not loaded with chocolate or other strong flavors, the nutty flavor of the browned butter really shines through.
Using browned butter in these Butter Pecan Cookies is perfect, because melted butter in cookie dough gives chewy, dense, and fudgy interiors.
How to brown butter
Browning butter takes only a few extra minutes than melting butter, but it adds a lot of flavor.
I like to use a light colored pan so that I can see exactly what’s happening on the bottom. It’s much harder to see the milk solids turning golden brown in a dark pan.
Melt the butter over medium-high heat and let it come to a boil, stirring occasionally. After it boils for a few minutes, you will see the milk solids on the bottom of the pan start to turn golden. I often notice this on the sides of the pan first.
When it starts turning golden in color, turn the heat lower and let it cook until the solids are a golden brown. This takes less than a minute and it burns fast so keep an eye on it. Pour the browned butter into the mixing bowl, scraping in all the yummy browned bits, so that it stops browning.A note on measuring flour
Measuring flour correctly is essential to the success of a recipe.
There is no one correct way to measure flour other than weighing it. If you don’t have a scale, or if the recipe you are following doesn’t give weight measurements, it’s important to measure the flour the same way the recipe writer measured. Hopefully the author provides either a weight or a method.
Two ways of measuring flour are the dip and sweep method and the spoon and level method. One is not more correct than the other, however there is a significant difference in weight between the two.
In the dip and sweep method, dip the measuring cup into the flour and scoop it out. Run the flat edge of a butter knife over the top to level off the flour
My weights correspond to the dip and sweep method because that’s the method I learned from Cook’s Illustrated, Julia Child, and other cooks and cookbooks.
For the spoon and level method, fluff the flour in the top of the bag, then spoon the flour into the measuring cup. Run the flat edge of a butter knife over the top to level off the flour.
How to make Butter Pecan Cookies
Once you’ve got the pecans toasted in butter and the butter browned, these cookies come together quickly.
Combine the dry ingredients (the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt) in a bowl.
In another large mixing bowl – the one you’ve poured the browned butter into – whisk together the browned butter, sugars, vanilla, and eggs.
Stir in the dry ingredients until no streaks of flour remain, then stir in the butter pecans.
Chill the dough
continued on next page
ADVERTISEMENT
