High Altitude Soft and Chewy Brown Sugar Pecan Cookies

An easy, high altitude recipe for soft and chewy brown sugar pecan cookies, coated in sparkling sugar and spiced with a little cardamom. These are incredibly soft brown sugar cookies that are full of nutty chopped pecans, although you can leave the pecans out for a plain brown sugar cookie, too. These also make a wonderful cookie recipe to add to your holiday baking list!

You might also like these high altitude recipes for soft and chewy date pecan cookie sandwiches, soft ginger molasses cookies, and soft maple cookies.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on this site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet, so mountain bakers can bake with confidence.

Perfect for the Holidays. These brown sugar pecan cookies make a wonderful holiday cookie with the nutty pecans, sweet brown sugar and hint of cardamom. And they make a lovely addition to a Christmas cookie box.

Easy to Make. You’ll love the simplicity of today’s recipe, with standard pantry ingredients and an easy method of making the cookie dough.

Soft for Days. The soft and chewy texture of these brown sugar cookies is just perfect, and they’re still soft days after baking.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

• Butter. I bake with unsalted butter, but if you use salted, you should reduce the salt in the recipe.
• Sugar. A combination of brown sugar and granulated sugar adds sweetness, moisture, and a hint of molasses. The moisture in the brown sugar also makes a softer, chewier cookie.
• Egg. Gives the cookie dough structure and helps to bind the dough together.
• Golden Syrup. Lyle’s golden syrup has a buttery, toffee caramel flavor, and it’s just wonderful in these cookies. It also makes the cookies so soft and chewy, so it’s important for the right texture. If you can’t find golden syrup, you can use dark corn syrup instead.
• Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
• Corn Starch. Tenderizes the cookie dough for a softer texture.
• Baking Soda. Leavens the cookies so they puff up as they bake.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness.
• Cardamom. Complements the flavors of the brown sugar, golden syrup and pecans.
• Flour. All-purpose flour adds structure and strength.
• Pecans. Adds nutty crunch. You can also use walnuts if you like, or just leave the nuts out completely.

Instructions

• In a bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter, brown sugar, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, egg, golden syrup, vanilla, corn starch, baking soda, salt and cardamom for 2 minutes, until fluffy.

• Add the flour and chopped pecans, and use a spatula to fold everything together to form a dough.

• Use a small cookie scoop with a release lever to portion the dough into 24 portions. Roll the dough into balls, then coat in the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Flatten the dough balls slightly with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a glass.
• Cover the flattened dough balls and refrigerate for 2 hours.

• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper.
• Place the chilled cookies 3 inches apart on the baking sheet, and bake for exactly 8 minutes. Cool the cookies for 2 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

TIP: When the cookies are hot from the oven, they’ll be slightly puffed, but the centers will settle down and flatten a bit as they cool.

Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I just use more sugar instead of the golden syrup?

If you leave the syrup out, the texture of these brown sugar pecan cookies just won’t be the same. The golden syrup contributes to the soft chewy texture, and you really need to use it. You can also substitute dark corn syrup, if you can’t get golden syrup.

What does golden syrup taste like?

Golden syrup has notes of butter, toffee and caramel.

Can I make these without the pecans?

Yes, the recipe works just fine if you want to leave out the pecans.

Can these cookies be frozen?

Yes, you can freeze the baked cookies in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3-6 months.

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