Pecan Praline Butter Refrigerator Cookies

Pecan Praline Butter Refrigerator Cookies

This recipe started with Cupcake Jemma's Vanilla Pecan Cinnamon Buns. I've made those two or three times, and they are spectacular. Part of the recipe involves the pecan praline butter that's in this recipe. You end up with leftover pecan praline butter, so I decided to mix some into one of my favorite cookie recipes, Colorful Sugar Cookies/Chocolate Chip Shortbread. 

This was the result, and I love them. They are crisp, buttery, nutty, sweet. Mmm. So good. 

So, if you love pecans and crisp cookies, these may be for you.

Pecan Praline Butter Refrigerator Cookies

Ingredients:

• 14 tablespoons butter, softened

• ½ cup pecan praline butter*

• ¾ cup granulated sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 egg

• 2 ¼ cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

• ¾ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ cup chopped toasted pecans

Instructions:

• Cream butter, pecan praline butter, and sugar.

• Add vanilla and egg.  

• Sift dry ingredients together and add to mixture.

• Stir in nuts.

• Divide dough in half and form each half into a log and wrap in parchment or wax paper. Refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour and up to a week.

• When ready to bake, preheat oven to 325°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

• Unwrap the dough log and using a sharp knife, cut ⅜” to ¼” slices.

• Arrange slices about an inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.

• Bake at 325°F for approximately 18 minutes. 

• Remove to wire rack to cool.  Then store in an airtight container.

  
  

  Makes about 4 dozen small cookies

*Pecan Praline Butter:

• 150g toasted pecan halves

• 150g light brown sugar

• pinch salt

Place a non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Add the 150g light brown sugar. Heat sugar until it melts. You can stir it with a silicone spatula, but be careful to scrape off any sugar build up along the way. Sugar needs to be completely liquid. Add the 150g pecan halves and pinch of salt to the melted sugar and stir to coat the pecans. Once pecans are basically covered in molten sugar, carefully scrape all of it onto a parchment-lined pan and allow to cool completely.

Once praline is completely cool, break it apart into the bowl of a food processor, and process until you have a relatively smooth paste. Scrape into a bowl or clean pint size mason jar and set aside.

Makes about 1 cup

I keep the leftovers in a mason jar in the fridge.