I’m on Martha Stewart’s “daily cookies” mailing list and that probably explains why I make cookies several times a month (sometimes even more than once a week!). I end up bringing the majority of every batch into work with me to avoid eating them all myself, and luckily I have coworkers who not only love cookies but who aren’t watching their weight too much . . . and therefore are still happy to have me bring in fattening snacks at 8:30 am on a Monday.
For this batch of cookies I needed a recipe that didn’t call for eggs because, as mentioned in my last post, I somehow managed to run out of eggs and repeatedly forget to buy some. In fact, here it is two weeks later and I’m still out! I’m not sure I’ve ever gone two weeks without eating eggs . . . but I digress. No-egg cookie = shortbread to me, and I had pecans in the cabinet so these Pecan Shortbread cookies from Martha were the perfect solution. They actually taste better a day later so they’re perfect for bringing along to work or a party!
Pecan Shortbread Cookies
Adapted from Martha’s recipe
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 ounces pecan halves
- 2 tsp almond extract
Cream together butter, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until mixture is light in color, 3 to 4 minutes. Add flour, pecans, and almond extract, plus a pinch of salt, and mix until combined and the pecans start to break up.
Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour (or longer). Heat oven to 325 degrees.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies with a round cookie cutter and place on parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake until lightly browned, about 15-20 minutes.
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I subscribe to the motto that everything good (shortbread, in this case) is made better with nuts, so YUM! I gotta get on that mailing list!