Cherry & Pecan Cookies

Recipe:

Ingredient Notes

• Brown Sugar. For the dough, a darker variety of brown sugar is preferred as it offers a richer flavor. However, avoid muscovado sugar, as it would be too overpowering. For rolling the cookies, regular white granulated sugar works well, but you can use brown sugar if you prefer.
  Do not reduce the amount of sugar in the dough, as this significantly impacts both the texture of the finished cookies and the consistency of the raw dough.
• Eggs. Use medium-sized eggs (approximately 55g each). For optimal results, ensure your eggs are at room temperature. If you’re short on time, simply place them in a bowl of warm tap water for about 15 minutes.
• Butter. Use butter with a fat content of 72.5% or higher. Like the eggs, the butter should be at room temperature (soft, but not melted).
• Flour. Stick to all-purpose flour with roughly 10% protein. Strong bread flour is not suitable for this recipe, as it will alter the cookie’s texture.
• Nuts. While pecans are ideal, you can easily substitute them with walnuts, hazelnuts, or cashews. Almonds might be too firm for these cookies.
• Dried Cherries. Feel free to swap these for raisins or cranberries. However, the classic combination of cherries and pecans (or walnuts) is highly recommended for the best flavor profile.

Let’s start cooking!

Coarsely chop the nuts.

Beat the butter, regular sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt together until creamy. It’s normal for the sugar not to dissolve completely.

Add the egg and beat again. Then, sift the flour with the baking soda and baking powder, add it to the mixture, and knead it into a soft cookie dough.

Add the nuts and cherries.

Mix until the fillings are evenly distributed throughout the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes.

Form the chilled dough into 40 g balls. Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat, and flatten them slightly with your palm. Place the balls on the baking sheet about 3-4 cm apart. When baked, the balls will turn into flat cookies. If they are placed too close together, they will stick and form one large cookie.

Place in an oven that has been preheated to 180°C (355°F) and bake for about 7 minutes. Then, rotate the baking sheet 180 degrees and bake for an additional 6-7 minutes, until golden brown. Do not bake for longer than this; otherwise, the cookies will harden.

Enjoy!

This Cherry & Pecan Cookies recipe was checked, prepared and approved by Chef Tatyana Nazaruk - author of FlavorIt.com.
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