Pecan Pie Cookies

What... a chilly day.

Do you know how hard it is to blog in mittens?

10 out of 10 on the difficulty scale for super easy activities.

The wood-stove is stoked.  The electric heat is cookin'.  The blankets are out.  Layers are officially back in style once again.  Hot cocoa?  Sounds like a super idea to me.

It's the kind of morning that makes me want to cook up nothing but hot, cozy food.  You know, all those foods that remind you of warm holidays.  Part of me just wonders if half the joy is standing over the stove like its another heat source for your shivering fingers and toes.

So, being me, I decided that cold weather equals baking.  Because I want hot food.  And, I want junk food.  And, cookies are best served fresh out of the hot oven.  And...

do I really need another reason?

I chose this cookie recipe because I'm such a huge fan of pecan pie.  I love the tooth-killing sweetness combined with the flaky, buttery crust and pecans.  My only downfall is knowing that there is an entire pie in my fridge, calling my name, tempting me to forgo any sense of dietary dignity and dive in.

Diet?  No thanks.

Making these cookies is like gifting yourself with a mini pecan pie every day.  They store well, and for some reason, I've got way more self-control with these cookies than I do with pie.  It has nothing to do with taste, because they both make my mouth water.  But cookies don't seem to have the same urgency that pie does.  I think that because pecan pie only comes around once a year in my house, I gorge.  I want to eat the most, in the shortest amount of time.

Can we say, 'dog with a bone'?

I clearly do not share well.

These cookies are simple enough to make anytime I feel a craving hit.  So, I feel like I can let them out of my sight for a bit of time.  I might even get in the sharing mood for a bit of time.

Just a bit, though.

Baby steps.




Pecan Pie Cookies
(adapted from Land O' Lakes)

Cookie:
2 cups flour
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 stick butter
1 egg
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla

Topping:
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla


Preheat oven 350F.

Combine all cookie ingredients except flour in a mixer on medium.  Reduce speed and slowly incorporate flour until combined.

Scoop out 2 tbsp of dough and roll into a ball.  Place on a cookie sheet.  Repeat until all of the dough is on rolled and on the cookie sheet.  Use your thumb to indent the top of the ball, creating a cavity for the filling.

Combine all of the ingredients for the filling in a bowl.  Use a spoon to fill each cookie indent with the filling.

Bake 10-12 minutes.





Listening to:   Lady GaGa - Paparazzi