Pecan Sandies
A crispy, melt-in-your-mouth pecan butter cookie, featuring butter-roasted pecans for enhanced aroma.
Ingredients
chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces)
packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup
unsalted butter (cut into chunks)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks)
corn oil (or other flavorless vegetable oil)
1/2 cup
large egg (plus 1 large egg yolk)
1
vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons
salt
1/8 teaspoon
all-purpose white flour
2 2/3 cups
powdered sugar
1 cup
perfect pecan halves (for topping)
About 35
Instructions
1
Baking the pecans
In a medium heavy-bottomed pot, combine the chopped pecans and butter. Heat over medium-high until just simmering, stirring frequently for 4-5 minutes, until the pecans and butter turn a lovely brown; watch carefully so they do not scorch. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer set over a metal bowl and let stand until the butter drains into the bowl. Place the butter mixture in the freezer, stirring once or twice, until firm but not solid, about 10 minutes. Set the pecans aside.
2
Mixing the dough base
In a food processor, combine the cooled browned butter, oil, flour, and powdered sugar. Pulse with on/off until well mixed, stopping to stir a few times to redistribute the contents of the bowl. Pour the butter-flour mixture into a large bowl. Stir 1/2 cup of the pecans into the flour mixture.
3
Preparing the wet mixture
In the food processor, combine the remaining 1/2 cup pecans and the brown sugar. Process until the pecans are finely ground and the mixture looks crumbly, stopping once midway to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the whole egg and egg yolk, 1 tbsp water, vanilla, and salt, and process for about 1 minute until fully combined.
4
Combining into a dough
Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture until just combined. Knead by hand until evenly mixed and smooth. (If needed, add a few drops of water to moisten.)
5
Rolling out the dough
Divide the dough in half. Place each portion between two large sheets of wax paper. Roll each portion to about 1/8 inch thick; check the underside of the dough and smooth out any wrinkles that form.
