The ultimate southern cookie recipe; these Butter Pecan Cookies are nutty, chewy, flavorful, and a favorite cookie recipe for the holiday season! This cookie recipe features a homemade recipe version and an easy cake mix recipe.
Butter Pecan Cookie Ingredients
Butter Pecan Cookies have a toasted nutty buttery sweet cream flavor with a hint of sweet brown sugar maple taste that you’ll fall in love with this season! It’s the quintessential southern fall dessert that deserves more praise and this season I’ll be baking more with this warm mouthwatering flavor.
Buttery Pecan Cookies are typically served as a fall dessert. But, it’s also a popular holiday cookie baked for fall and winter holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. My favorite Christmas cookie recipes always feature these maple butter cookies with pecans and these Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies.
Flour – Use all-purpose flour for this pecan cookie recipe.
Butter – What makes this fall cookie recipe rich-tasting is the butter. Typically, I use unsalted butter but feel free to use whatever you have on hand; even margarine. The butter should be room temperature.
Pecans – Pecans are the star of this recipe. I use fresh pecan pieces.
Instant Pudding – This ingredient changes the texture of the cookies and makes them thick and chewy. Pro-Tip: Use flavored pudding like butterscotch for extra deep flavoring.
Maple and Butter Extract – Maple flavoring is a common ingredient added to butter pecan flavored desserts. Visit any bakery and order a butter pecan dessert. The warm maple aroma gives this secret ingredient away instantly. It adds another level of warmth along with butter extract and I’m not complaining.
Sugar – Two varieties of sugar are used. First, the brown sugar adds a deep molasses flavor. The granuated sugar adds sweetness without adding more moisture.
The ultimate soft and chewy Pecan Butter Cookies that are great for any fall baking. Sweet vanilla butter cream cookies with a hint of brown sugar and maple flavor and roasted buttery pecans in a dessert cookie.
We love to make these during cold weather and they are also the perfect recipe for Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Halloween. One bite and you’ll fall in love with these southern pecan cookies.
The first time I tried butter pecan flavored desserts I fell in love. Pecans are a huge part of southern desserts culture in the south and it’s not uncommon to find them incorporated in cakes, ice cream, and cookies.
EASY ALTERNATIVE CAKE MIX COOKIES BUTTER PECAN RECIPE
If you’re looking to make a quick and easy alternative to Butter Pecan Cookies from scratch, I’ve got the recipe for you. This easy cake mix cookie recipe is quick and easy to make without sacrificing the flavor!
CAKE MIX BUTTER PECAN COOKIE RECIPE
- Butter Pecan Cake Mix
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
Head to the grocery store and pick up a box of Butter Pecan Cake Mix. I’ve used Betty Crocker in the past and they always come out perfectly.
In the recipe directions below, you’ll find the recipe and instructions for Cake Mix Butter Pecan Cookies!
Pro Cookie Baking Tips: Butter Pecan
What does butter pecan taste like? If you’ve ever been to an ice cream shop and have smelled buttery maple syrup and cream that’s what it smells like. Butter pecan is vanilla in flavor with a mild brown sugar and sweet cream butter flavor with roasted pecans. It is similar to pecan pralines that are famous in the south but not as rich. Most bakeries include a slight hint of maple syrup flavor and brown sugar flavor as well as enhanced sweet butter flavor.
Perfect Cookies Every Time: Use a cookie scoop to get similar size cookie dough. This allows for even cooking without overbaking.
Butter Pecan Icing: To make these cookies with butter pecan frosting, simple add a few drops of maple and butter flavoring to the icing recipe.
Christmas Baking Cookie tray and Cookie Swap Recipes
These southern pecan cookies are perfect for your holiday cookie tray, too. I like to bake these cookies around the holiday season with these other Christmas cookie recipes.
- PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOMS (Cookie Blossoms)
- ITALIAN CHRISTMAS COOKIES (Italian Sugar Cookies)
- PECAN SNOWBALL COOKIES (Russian Tea Cookies)
- SPRITZ COOKIES (Classic Shortbread Christmas Cookies)
- WHIPPED SHORTBREAD COOKIES
- CHOCOLATE CRINKLE COOKIES
- TURTLE COOKIES
- GINGERBREAD COOKIES
If you love Pecan Butter Cookies, try my Lemon Sugar Cookies. This recipe has an option to make them into cake mix cookies and it also has a fresh lemon cookie recipe that’s been shared over 700,000 times! My Gooey Butter Cookies are a quick cake mix recipe, too. And, if you’re not ready to give up on summer just yet, try these Strawberry Cookies.
Butter Pecan Cookies
Favorite Recipe
The BEST Butter Pecan Cookies with roasted pecan flavor. My southern butter pecan cookie recipe tastes like buttery vanilla sweet cream brown sugar maple cookies with toasted pecans.
I include a from-scratch homemade Butter Pecan Cookies recipe AND an easy cake mix version.
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 36 cookies
Calories 138 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tbsp instant vanilla or butterscotch pudding flavor
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vinegar, cider or white
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp butter or butter-rum flavor
- 1 tsp maple extract flavor
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Topping
- Pecan pieces
- 1 1/2 cups powdered confectioners' sugar
- 2 tbsp cold water
EASY ALTERNATIVE RECIPE BELOW
Instructions
From Scratch Butter Pecan Cookies
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, instant pudding, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
In a bowl fit with a mixer, combine brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and vinegar. Beat until smooth and creamy.
Beat in egg, vanilla extract, butter flavor, and maple flavor until smooth.Mix in flour and chopped pecans.
Use a cookie scoop to scoop dough balls onto baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Place pecan pieces on top of cookie while cooling then transfer to wire cooling rack. To prevent cookies from spreading, place dough in the refrigeratorfor 30 minutesor longer.
To make the icing, combine powdered sugar and water. Drizzle over top of cookie. Allow to set then store in a ziplock bag.
EASY ALTERNATIVE Butter Pecan CookieRECIPE
1 box ( Betty Crocker ) Butter Pecan Cake Mix
2 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
Combine cake mix, eggs, and oil. Stir until combined.
Refrigerate dough for 15 minutes. Use a cookie scoop to scoop cookies onto a baking sheet. Bake for 13-16 minutes or until slightly golden. Place cookie dough in the refrigerator between baking. Top with pecan pieces then transfer to a cooling rack. Mix powdered sugar and water then drizzle on top of cookies. Store in a ziplock bag.
Notes
Two Butter Pecan Cookie Recipes: This recipe features a from scratch butter pecan cookie recipe and an easy cake mix butter pecan cookie recipe in the recipe instructions. Use one recipe based on needs.
Perfect Cookies Every Time: Use a cookie scoop to get similar size cookie dough. This allows for even cooking without overbaking.
Butter Pecan Icing: To make these cookies with butter pecan frosting, simple add a few drops of maple and butter flavoring to the icing recipe.
Nutrition
Calories: 138kcalCarbohydrates: 19gProtein: 1gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 19mgSodium: 97mgPotassium: 23mgFiber: 1gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 166IUCalcium: 8mgIron: 1mg
Nutritional information is only an estimate and it's accuracy is not guaranteed to be exact.
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