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Frosted Butter Pecan Cookies: These homemade brown sugar cookies are made with browned butter, dark brown sugar, vanilla, and maple sugar toasted pecans—the secret to making them better than the rest. Each cookie is lightly dipped in a sweet, thick, and creamy pecan-infused maple frosting that sets overtop each buttery pecan cookie. These cookies are absolutely scrumptious. This is a new favorite cookie for the season of baking, sharing, and gifting.
Here we go! With Halloween on Thursday, my thoughts are slowly shifting to the Thanksgiving holiday, and I am so excited! One of the many fun things about creating and sharing recipes with you all is that I can really embrace and honestly overshare all holiday recipes, which are my favorite to create.
If there is one season I love the most for cooking and baking, it’s this time of year.
I want these recipes to sparkle and, and even more importantly, be delicious! I definitely got this from my Nonnie, whom I miss so much! She made everything special no matter the season, but especially in the fall!
And my gosh, she would love these cookies!! Just like my mom, Nonnie loved a good butter pecan cookie. Honestly, she loved pecans in general!
Taking inspiration from my Nonnie’s brown sugar pecan Brie, I baked up these cookies, and they are so good! I even added some chocolate to them!
Ingredients and Special Tools
Pecan Mix Ingredients
- pecans
- maple syrup (use real maple syrup, nothing with added sugars)
- dark brown sugar
- cinnamon
Cookie Ingredients
- butter
- brown sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- flour
- baking soda
- salt
- dark chocolate chunks
Frosting Ingredients
- powdered sugar
- vanilla
- milk
Special Tools
- small pot
- sheet pans
- electric mixer
- small whisk or fork
Step-by-step details
Step 1: make the pecan syrup
In a small pot, mix the maple syrup and pecans. Simmer until the maple syrup is steamy and you can smell the sweetness in the air.
Simmering the pecans in the maple infuses the maple with the pecan flavor.
Pull the syrup off the heat, use a fork to strain out the pecans onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
Toss the pecans with brown sugar and cinnamon, then bake them until they’re caramelized. Let them cool, and then give them a good chop.
Step 2: brown the butter
Brown one stick of butter, leaving the other stick at room temperature. This gives you the flavor of browned butter but leaves you with a cookie that has great texture, too.
When the butter is browned, pour it into a bowl, then add the remaining stick of butter.
Step 3: make the cookie dough
To the butter you want to add the brown sugar and beat everything to combine. Now add the eggs and vanilla.
Mix in the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt.
Step 4: the mix-ins
Next, mix 3/4 of the chopped pecans and some chocolate chunks into the dough and roll into balls.
Save a handful of pecans for topping the cookies!
Step 5: chilling and baking
Chill the dough balls for 5 to 10 minutes. I don’t usually do this when baking cookies, but with this recipe, I found that a quick chill yields the best cookie. Thicker but not cakey and with just barely set edges!
Once chilled, bake the cookies for 11-13 minutes. When you pull the cookies out, give them a light tap on the counter to ensure they set perfectly.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet.
Finish these up!
Step 6: make the frosting
Use the reserved pecan infused maple syrup to make the frosting. Mix the maple with powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk.
Add a pinch of sea salt too!
Step 7: dip each cookie
Finish the cookies with a dip into the frosting. Then sprinkle the tops of each frosted cookie with chopped pecans.
These are the perfect holiday cookies. I’m getting so excited about this year’s cookie box!
Looking for cookie recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies with Cinnamon Brown Butter Frosting
Chocolate Bourbon Chai Latte Cupcakes with Butter Pecan Frosting
Glazed Brown Sugar Maple Cookies
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Frosted Butter Pecan Cookies be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Frosted Butter Pecan Cookies
Servings: 22 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 216 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Pecans
- 1 cup raw pecans
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Cookies
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks
Frosting
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. In a pot, combine the pecans and maple syrup. Simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Strain the pecans away from the syrup and place on the prepared baking sheet. Set the syrup aside to use for the frosting.3. Toss the pecans with brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake for 10 minutes, until toasted. Remove from oven and sprinkle with sea salt (if desired). Let cool, then chop.4. Add 1 stick of butter to a skillet set over medium heat. Cook until the butter begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl. Add the remaining stick butter to the brown butter. 5. Beat the butter with the brown sugar and mix until combined. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until creamy. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Fold in the chocolate chips and 3/4 of the chopped pecans, saving the rest for topping.6. Roll the dough into rounded tablespoon-size balls and place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Freeze for 5 minutes.7. Bake for 11-12 minutes, until just set. Remove from the oven and tap the baking sheet on the counter to flatten, if needed. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. They will continue to cook as they sit on the baking sheet.8. To make the frosting. Whisk the powdered sugar, 1/3 cup of the reserved maple syrup, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Whisk in the milk, adding more as needed to thin the frosting. Dip each cookie into the frosting, then sprinkle with chopped pecans. Let the icing set. EAT! Or store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
My dad is from Italy and loves pistachios. I was making cookies for him, and our family, and I decided to sub pistachios for the pecans, and the maple syrup for honey, to emulate baklava – not Italian, of course, but the honey/pistachio combo that could work in place of the pecans. I had to add a few teaspoons of water to thin out the honey, while boiling the pistachios, but otherwise this recipe turned out so well. Very special and tasty! I think a new recipe for the annual cookie repertoire.
Hi Karin,
Happy New Year!!🎆 Love to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you. XxT
There are steps to this te pie, but so worth it. The brown butter and pure maple syrup are scrumptious in this cookie!
Hi there,
Happy Holidays!🎄🎁☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it turned out well! XxT