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These Chewy Pecan Butter Cookies are soft with a chewy texture, nice crisp edges, and exploding with pecan flavor! The incredible taste of butter pecan wrapped up cookie form!
In my opinion, there really isn’t anything better than a soft chewy cookie recipe. They are perfect for just about any occasion. Great to share as a gift, enjoy for game night, or your favorite holiday cookie exchange!
Why you’ll love this pecan butter cookie recipe!
- Crumbly edges
- Packed with flavor
- Extra soft and chewy center
- Crisp sugar coating
We love all things pecan around our house and when I received this wonderful box of joy from Millican Pecan Company, who have been in business in Texas since 1888! Yep — That is right, 1888. And you can certainly tell!
The pecan halves and pieces were so fresh and delicious. And I have to say the jar of pecan butter was the best I have ever tasted!
I knew right away I had to put this jar to test with my soft and chewy pecan butter cookies! Oh my, they are the best batch I have made yet!
These soft and chewy pecan cookies aren’t too thick, have crispy edges, and have a super soft chewy center! They have all the flavors of butter pecan ice cream wrapped in a cookie.
Pecan Butter Cookie Ingredients
- Butter: I use salted butter to keep things simple and skip the added salt. If you’ve got unsalted, just add ¼ teaspoon of salt. Butter gives these cookies their tender texture and rich flavor.
- Brown & Granulated Sugar: A combo of both adds the perfect balance of sweetness, softness, and chewy texture. I prefer dark brown sugar for its deeper molasses flavor, but light brown works just fine.
- Pecan Butter: The star of the show! It adds creamy richness and that signature nutty flavor. I love Millican Pecan Butter—it’s smooth, easy to work with, and not overly oily. If your jar has excess oil, pour a bit off and stir before measuring.
- Eggs: Large, room-temperature eggs help bind the dough and add moisture.
- Vanilla & Almond Extract: A splash of both adds depth. The almond extract is a little secret ingredient—just enough to make people say, “What is that amazing flavor?”
- Flour: All-purpose flour, spooned and leveled. No sifting needed if you’re using good-quality flour.
- Baking Soda & Baking Powder: This combo gives just the right lift and that soft, chewy texture we love
How to Make Chewy Pecan Cookie Recipe
✱ Be sure to see the recipe card below for exact ingredients and full recipe instructions!
These soft and chewy pecan cookies come together in about 10 minutes!
Step 1 | Prepare Pecans
In a food processor, pulse pecans until ground. I like to make them about the consistency of panko crumbs. You can also use a good blender or a knife to cut them.
If you prefer a larger piece of pecan, you can chop them into the size you like. It really is a matter of preference, and they are delicious either way.
You can even toast the pecans first for more flavor. It’s super easy to do!
Step 2 | Cream Butter
In a large bowl cream together butter and sugar. Add in eggs and extracts.
Step 3 | Add in flour mixture and ground pecans
Add in flour, baking soda, and baking powder and combine. Then, stir in ground pecans.
Step 4 | Chilling the Dough
This step is very important to keep the cookie from spreading too quickly while cooking. You want to be sure the dough is firm to the touch and well set.
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Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. You can place it in the freezer for 30 minutes to speed up the time or can make it ahead up to 3 days before.
Step 5 | Preheat the Oven and Bake
Preheat the oven and line a baking sheet. Use a small cookie scoop to form a 1 ¼ to 1 ½ inch scoop. You can also use a heaping tablespoon measuring spoon or roll it into a ball (each ball has about 1.5 tablespoons of dough).
Drop into a bowl of granulated sugar and roll around or sprinkle to coat the cookie dough.
Place pecan butter cookie dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
Bake and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack to finish cooling. (If you can resist eating them)
How to Make Ahead
- You can make the dough for these soft and chewy pecan cookies and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Just before serving, roll in sugar and bake.
Easy Pecan Cookies Variations
- Make these with peanut butter and ground peanuts instead of pecans. So good too.
- Add ½ cup of chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, or toffee bits into the batter for a little something extra.
- Put 1 tablespoon of cinnamon in the sugar you roll the cookie in. For a snickerdoodle-like flavor.
Tips
- Want more intense flavor toast pecans before adding them to the recipe
- Make sure the dough is well chilled. It is so important to get a nice chewy center. It also doesn’t allow the cookie to be too flat!
- Don’t overbake them! When the cookies come out of the oven they should be a light golden brown, still soft in the middle. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, they will finish baking as they cool. This will keep your cookies soft and chewy. If you wait until the center is firm, the result will be an over-baked hard cookie.
Storage Instructions for Soft Pecan Cookies
Freezing Tips:
- Place scooped cookie dough or balls without sugar-coating on a baking tray in one layer in the freezer and allow cookies to completely freeze. Remove cookies from the baking tray and place them in a freezer-safe plastic bag. Let frozen cookie dough balls sit on the counter for 15 – 30 minutes, roll in sugar, then bake for an extra minute. No need to completely thaw.
- Unbaked cookie dough balls, without sugar-coating, freeze well for up to 3 months.
- Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe bag or container. When you’re ready to eat, allow the cookies to thaw on the counter at room temperature until softened through.
Room Temperature Storage:
- Keep baked soft and chewy pecan cookies in a sealed, airtight container or ziplock bag on the counter for 3 to 4 days.
Pecan Butter Cookies FAQs
Setting out your butter for about 1 to 2 hours will bring it to room temperature. You want it to come to about 65°. If you touch it with your finger, it will make an indention but won’t sink through.
If you happen to forget you can also place a cup of water in the microwave and bring it to a boil. About 1 to 2 minutes. Slice butter and quickly put it in the microwave for about 10 minutes along with the cup of water. The residual heat will evenly bring the butter to a softened state.
This allows an accurate amount of flour to be used. If you pack your measuring cup too much you get more flour than the recipe calls for. To spoon and level you simply take a spoon and fluff the flour in the container. Then take the fluffed flour and spoon it into a measuring cup. Then level off (to be even with the top of the measuring cup) with a knife or the handle of the spoon.
We sure love all things pecans around here! Here are a few to try for something sweet: pecan chewies, pecan pound cake, and butter pecan macaron. If you are looking for something on the savory side, this chicken salad with pecans, leftover turkey salad recipe, or my favorite strawberry pecan salad.
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Pecan Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for topping cookies
- 1 cup pecan butter, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup pecans, finely chopped or ground into panko crumb consistency
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse pecans until finely ground like the consistency of panko crumbs or chopped into bits (whichevet texture you prefer).
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. About 3 to 4 minutes. Scraping bowl as needed. Add in eggs on at the time, mixing each until incorporated. Stir in vanilla and almond extracts. Mix in pecan butter.
- Stir in flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Then add in ground pecans and mix until just combined, not over mixed.
- Chill dough for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator.
- Preheat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silcone baking mat.
- Plan 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small bowl. Once the dough is well chilled, use a small cookie scoop to scoop up cookie dough. Roll in sugar to coat, then place on cookie sheet.
- Bake for 7 to 10 minutes or until the edges become a light golden color. If you have a convection setting I love the results on convection. Do not overbake. Let cookies rest on baking sheet for 5 minutes and then remove to a wire cooling rack
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Notes
- Want more intense flavor toast pecans before adding them to the recipe.
- Make sure the dough is well chilled. It is so important to get a nice chewy center. It also doesn’t allow the cookie to be too flat!
- Don’t overbake them! When the cookies come out of the oven they should be a light golden brown, still soft in the middle. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, they will finish baking as they cool. This will keep your cookies soft and chewy. If you wait until the center is firm, the result will be an over-baked hard cookie.
Nutrition Information
Nutritional Disclaimer
Soulfully Made is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
©️Soulfully Made
These are my new favorite cookies! I made a batch last night and my family has already devoured half of them!
Thank you, Tayler. They do disappear quickly!
These had the perfect texture and they were so flavorful. 10/10!
Thank you so much, Chenee!
So tasty and much easier to make than I thought they would be. Absolutely delicious.
Thank you, Casey!
These would be perfect for the holidays. How can you resist pecan cookies?
I agree! They are so hard to resist.
Drooling over these cookies. Amazing flavors. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much!!
I ate these so quickly that I’m already making a second batch. So yummy
Thank you, Sisley!
Quick question before I make these – if I were to use my convection setting, do I need to turn the oven temp down? There are a lot of expensive ingredients in these cookies so I want to make sure I do it right!
I use a bake setting in my convection oven, so I have not tested it with baking with convection turned on. I would watch them closely. Would love to hear how it works for you.
These cookies are fantastic!! I love anything with pecans.
These cookies are so good! I love butter pecan bread and ice cream, so I knew these cookies would be a new favorite. I was right!
Love this pecan chewy cookie recipe. Obsessed
Butter pecan is my FAVE! The best recipe around.
I made these cookies over the weekend and they were incredible! Definitely making them again for the holidays!
This looks and sounds fabulous! Love this recipe. It’s a perfect dish for my family.
Made these for my dad twice already – he LOVES them!
Aww! I love that! I am so glad he loves them!
Amazing cookies! Making it again this weekend because everyone loved it so much they are asking for more.
I just LOVE fall and the use of pecans in all the things… and these cookies did not disappoint! I cannot wait to make and share another batch!
Ridiculously good flavor. And the texture was a DREAM!
Hot dang these cookies are amazing! Mine are a little bit fluffier than yours but they’re amazing. So incredibly soft and so full of delicious, nutty flavor. Will be making them again for sure!
I am so glad you love them too! I think that changes a little with different brands of pecan butter. I noticed a difference when I used a different brand. I love the nutty flavors too! Thanks so much for making them and sharing!
These cookies look so good! I need to make a batch this fall.
I love everything about these scrumptious cookies!