Brown Sugar Pecan Cut Outs
These cookies are a cross between a traditional cut out sugar cookie and a pecan sandie. They’re delicious iced, or just as a plain cookie!
Brown Sugar Pecan Cut Outs
Yield: 24 cookies
Total cook time: 1 1/2 hours
Ingredients
Cookies
Toasted pecans: 2 cups (250g)
Brown Sugar: 1 cup (200g)
Flour: 2 cups (240g)
Baking Powder: 1 teaspoon
Fine sea salt: 1/4 teaspoon
Cardamom: 1 teaspoon
Unsalted Butter (Chilled): 1 cup, 2 sticks
Icing
Powdered Sugar: 4 cups
Light Corn Syrup: 4 teaspoons
Lemon Juice: 1 teaspoon
Water: 2 tablespoons (+ more, as needed)
A Few Notes:
If your dough sticks to the counter when you’re rolling it out, pop it in the fridge for 5 minutes to firm up slightly.
These are also delicious without the icing!
Pairs Well With:
*Special equipment: Baking sheet, 3 inch cookie cutter, bags for piping icing
The How To (Cookies)
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the toasted pecans and 1/2 cup of the brown sugar in a food processor and process until finely ground. Transfer the pecan mixture to the work bowl of a stand mixer. Add the flour, remaining 1/2 cup of brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and cardamom and whisk until combined.
Cut your butter into small chunks and add them to the work bowl. Using the paddle attachment, beat the mixture on medium speed until it forms a cohesive dough. It will look crumbly at first, but will eventually come together!
Divide the dough into two equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 1/2” thickness. Cut shapes out of the dough (I use a heart shaped cookie cutter!) and transfer them to your prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the second half of the dough.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 10-12 minutes, until set around the edges. Cool completely on a wire rack.
The How To (Icing):
While the cookies are baking, making your icing! In a large bowl, whisk the powdered sugar, corn syrup, lemon juice, and water together. The icing will be very very thick at this point - that’s OK, you are using it to pipe a border around the edge of the cookies.
Tint the icing with food coloring, if desired.
Transfer half of the icing into a plastic bag with the end snipped off. Add additional water to the remaining icing in the bowl to thin it out to a “floodable” consistency, then add it to another plastic bag with the end snipped off.
Using the thicker icing, pipe a border around the edge of each cookie. Using the thinner icing, fill in the cookies (I like to use an offset spatula to push the icing towards the edges).
* Keeps for three days, in an airtight container
