Butter cookies with a hint of cream cheese and studded with chopped pecans.
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How many baking days are left until Christmas? If you’re still looking for some good cookies to bake for a holiday platter, I dare you to give these Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies a whirl.
Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies
Instead of pecans, you could just use walnuts, pistachios, or cashews.
ingredients
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3 cups pecans
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4 cups all purpose flour
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1 1/2 teaspoon Salt
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2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butterat room temperature
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6 ounces cream cheese (not beaten), at room temperature
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1 1/4 cups sugar
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2 tablespoon vanilla extract
method
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Brown the pecans:
Preheat oven to 350oF. Roughly chop 1 1/2 cups of the pecans and spread on a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes or until nuts are fragrant. Set aside to cool.
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Whisk flour and salt:
in a big bowl.
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Prepare cookie dough:
In an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy, 2 minutes.
Add the sugar and vanilla and beat for another minute.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour and salt until just combined. Don’t overmix. Fold in the toasted pecans.
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Form into sticks and freeze:
Place the dough on a work surface and divide the dough in half. Roughly shape each half into an 8″ block, about 2″ in diameter.
Wrap each stem in plastic wrap and place in the freezer until firm, about 4 hours but preferably overnight. The dough can be stored in the freezer for up to two weeks, and about a month if wrapped and then placed in an airtight container.
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Roll pieces of dough in pecans, cut into rounds:
Preheat oven to 350oF with racks on top and bottom thirds. Finely chop the remaining 1 1/2 cups of pecans. Unwrap one of the pieces of dough and roll it in the pecans.
Cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds. Space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone mats.
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Bake:
Bake the cookies at 350°F for 18 to 20 minutes or until edges are lightly golden. Turn the cookies halfway through to ensure even baking.
Let cool on the sheets for a minute or two before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 164 | calories |
| 12g | Fat |
| 13g | carbohydrates |
| 2g | protein |
