Pecan Shortbread Cookie Recipe With Toasted Pecans

Pecan shortbread cookies are pale and crumbly, with toasted pecans chopped all the way through the dough. There are no eggs and no baking powder in them, so nothing rises and nothing turns chewy. You’re working a cup of butter into two cups of flour, and that’s where the short, crumbly bite comes from.

The pecans are the part to get right. By toasting them first, you drive off some moisture and bring up the oils, so you taste the nut through all that butter. Chop them fine as well, since big pieces make the slices break apart when you cut the chilled log.

What Makes a Pecan Shortbread Cookie

Shortbread is named for a crumb that breaks clean instead of stretching (a short crumb). There’s no egg to bind the dough. When you work the butter into the flour, the fat wraps around the flour so it can’t soak up enough water to turn stretchy. That’s why the cookie crumbles and then melts on your tongue.

Stick with butter instead of margarine or a tub spread, since those spreads hold extra water when you bake, and you’ll lose the meltiness and some of the buttery flavor.

Not every pecan cookie is shortbread, mind you. Our pecan cookies recipe makes a drop cookie, so you scoop the dough straight onto the tray instead of making a log.

Ingredients

This is a plain shortbread dough, one part butter to two parts flour, with toasted pecans chopped fine through it. Here’s what you’ll need for about four dozen cookies:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup toasted pecans, chopped fine

We use confectioners’ sugar instead of granulated because it dissolves straight into the butter, so you get a smoother dough and a finer crumb.

You can start with our chopped pecan pieces and chop them even smaller yourself before they go in the bowl. The finer the pieces, the cleaner your slices come off the log.

How to Make Pecan Shortbread Cookies

Plan for about three hours from start to finish, including leaving the dough to sit in the fridge. You’ll have an easier time with the creaming by using a hand mixer, though a sturdy spoon works just fine, too.

1. Toast the pecans first. Spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them at 350°F for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring once halfway. Pull them when they smell warm and nutty, before any sharp or smoky edge comes through, because chopped pecans turn from toasted to burnt in under a minute. Let them cool all the way, then chop them fine.
2. Beat the softened butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and salt for two to three minutes, until the mix looks smooth and light.
3. Add the flour and mix on low just until no dry streaks are left. The dough will be soft and a little sticky.
4. Scrape down the bowl and look for streaks of unmixed butter, since those leave greasy spots in the baked cookies.
5. Fold in the cooled pecans by hand or on the lowest speed.
6. Roll the dough into a log about two inches across on plastic wrap or parchment, then wrap it snugly.
7. Chill the log in the fridge for at least two hours, until it’s firm the whole way through. It’s easier to cut through cold dough, where soft dough squashes under the knife.
8. Heat the oven to 350°F. Slice the log into 1/4-inch rounds and set them on a lined baking sheet about an inch apart.
9. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until the tops look dry and the edges are just set. Let them cool on the pan for five minutes before you move them, because warm shortbread breaks easily.

Troubleshooting Your Shortbread

If your batch has gone wrong, it’s usually for one of four reasons, and all of them are easy to fix for the next log:

• The slices crumble as you cut them: Your pecan pieces are too big. Chop them finer next time, and cut with a long, straight push rather than a sawing motion.
• The cookies spread on the pan: The dough warmed up before it reached the oven. If the rounds feel soft by the time you’ve finished slicing, put the tray in the freezer for ten minutes before it goes in.
• You see greasy spots on the baked cookies: Some butter never mixed in. Scrape the bowl down before the flour goes in, and if you find pale streaks of butter along the sides, mix those through before you carry on.
• The tops took on color: A little color around the edge at 12 to 14 minutes is normal, but color across the top means they stayed in too long. Open the oven at 12 minutes, and if the tops have started to color, take the tray out then and give the next one 11 minutes.

Keeping Pecans Fresh for Shortbread

Keep your bulk pecans sealed tight in the freezer, where they’ll stay fresh for up to a year, because pecans pick up odors from the food around them. Chop only what you need for a batch, since chopped pieces don’t keep as long as halves, and if a handful smells sharp or like paint, it's better to just toss it and start over with fresh pecans.

What to Bake After Your Pecan Shortbread

Pecans suit just about every kind of baking, so a single bag will take you well past shortbread. If you want something sweeter and richer, go for our pecan pie cookies, which hold a gooey pecan filling in the middle. If you’d prefer a classic that the kids will go for, stir your leftover chopped pecans into some chocolate chip pecan cookies.

If you’re new to baking cookies, this shortbread recipe is an easy place to start, because there’s no leavening in it (baking powder or soda) to make the cookies rise unevenly. And because they come off the same log, you know you’ll get the same delicious flavor with each tray.

Frequently asked questions

My dough is too sticky to shape. Should I add more flour?

No, a soft and sticky dough is normal here, and extra flour would toughen the cookie. Lay plastic wrap over the top, press the dough into a log through the wrap. The fridge will firm it up for slicing.

Can I use pecans that are already roasted?

You can, and you’ll skip the toasting step if you do. Check the bag first, though, because roasted pecans are often salted, glazed, or candied, and that extra salt and sugar will change how the cookies taste.

Should I use salted butter if that’s what I have?

Unsalted butter is the better choice, since salted butter varies quite a bit between brands and you’re already adding your own half teaspoon. If salted is all you have, leave the added salt out and taste a pinch of the dough before the pecans go in.

Can I double the recipe?

Yes. If you do, roll the dough into two logs rather than one thick one. A fat log takes a good while longer to chill through to the middle, and the outside softens on the counter before you’ve finished slicing the rest.