It only has six ingredients, but this recipe for lacy pecan cookies yields a big batch perfect for bake sales, potlucks, or impromptu house parties. Combining pecans, sugar, and potato starch in the food processor creates a flavorful base and delicate crumb (all-purpose flour could never, but if you’re in a pinch, cornstarch makes a suitable swap) that just so happens to be gluten-free.
Customize the cookie dough by adding ½ tsp. of almond or vanilla extract to the egg whites. Swap the ground cinnamon for allspice, ginger, instant espresso powder, or any other spice you might find in a pecan pie. As is, these will bake up crispy and golden brown; for a softer, chewier texture, you can adjust the dry ingredients using equal parts white sugar and light or dark brown sugar. Go a step further and use chocolate chips instead of the reserved pecans to make nutty, gluten-free take on chocolate chip cookies, or try half toffee chips and half toasted pecans for Christmas cookie vibes. To cool the baked cookies, slide the entire sheet of parchment off the cookie sheet and onto a cooling rack. Bake the next round on fresh parchment while the first batch sets. Sprinkle the tops with flaky sea salt for an extra hit of flavorful crunch. Serve the cookies as is, or tuck them into a bowl of vanilla ice cream.
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour 15 minutes
Yield
Makes about 42 cookies
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 2
Coarsely chop 4 oz. (1 cup) pecans, lightly toasted, and set aside. Whisk 3 large egg whites in a large bowl until thick and opaque, but not yet holding peaks; set aside.
Step 3
Pulse remaining 2 oz. (½ cup) pecans in a food processor with 1 cup (200 g) sugar, ¼ cup (38 g) potato starch, ¼ tsp. kosher salt, and ¼ tsp. cinnamon until finely ground (be careful not to pulse to a paste; alternatively, crush ½ cup pecans in a resealable plastic bag, then toss in a mixing bowl with 1 cup sugar, ¼ cup potato starch, ¼ tsp. kosher salt, and ¼ tsp. cinnamon). Toss with reserved chopped pecans and then fold dry ingredients into egg whites.
Step 4
Drop ½ Tbsp. of batter 2" apart on lined baking sheet; bake until cookies are lightly browned and slightly puffed, 15–17 minutes. Slide parchment onto a wire rack and cool cookies completely (cookies will crisp as they cool), then remove from paper. Bake and cool 2 more parchment-lined sheets of cookies in same manner.
Do Ahead: Pecan cookies can be made 1 week ahead; cool completely, then store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Editor’s note: This recipe for pecan cookies was first printed in the April 2005 issue of ‘Gourmet.’ Head this way for more of our favorite cookie recipes →
Recipe notes
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