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Date pecan cookies filled with pecan buttercream.

High Altitude Soft and Chewy Date Pecan Cookies

Heather Smoke
Crispy edges and soft chewy centers make these date pecan cookies simply irresistible! Date syrup keeps them moist and chewy, while oats and pecans add texture and crunch. Fill them with fluffy pecan buttercream to make cookie sandwiches.

All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.

5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings15 sandwich cookies

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment

Ingredients
 

Cookies

  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • ½ cup granulated sugar, plus 1/4 cup for coating the cookies
  • ¼ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
  • ¼ cup date syrup
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • 1 ½ tbsp corn starch
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • ¼ cup old-fashioned oats
  • ¼ cup pecans or walnuts, finely chopped
  • ½ cup chopped dates, optional

Buttercream

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp meringue powder, optional
  • ¼ cup pecans or walnuts, finely chopped
  • tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions
 

Cookies

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F, and line several large baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar for 5 minutes on medium speed, scraping the bowl occasionally.
  • With the mixer on low, mix in the date syrup, egg and vanilla. The mixture will be lumpy.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, corn starch, baking soda and salt until well combined. Stir in the oats, pecans and chopped dates.
    Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl, mixing just until mostly combined. The dough will be very thick, and you'll need to use a spatula or your hands to finish incorporating all the dry ingredients into the dough.
  • Use a cupcake/ice cream scoop with a release lever to divide the dough into 10 portions (for large bakery sized cookies), a medium sized cookie scoop to divide it into 20 portions (for medium cookies), or a small cookie scoop to divide it into 30 portions (for small cookies).
    Note: The photographed cookie sandwiches filled with buttercream are small cookies.
  • Roll each portion of dough into a ball, and coat in granulated sugar.
    Place the dough balls 3 inches apart on the baking sheets.
  • Bake the cookies on the center oven rack for 9 1/2 - 10 minutes for large cookies, 7-8 minutes for medium cookies, and 6 1/2 - 7 minutes for small cookies. They should be golden brown and set around the edges, but underdone in the middle.
  • Let the cookies cool on the pan for several minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. The cookies will look slightly puffed when they come out of the oven, but their centers will settle down a bit as they cool.

Buttercream

  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine all the buttercream ingredients on low. Increase speed to medium and whip for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl frequently, until light and fluffy.
  • Turn half the cookies bottom side up, and spread or pipe the buttercream onto the cookies. Top with a second cookie to make cookie sandwiches.
    Yields enough buttercream for 15 small cookie sandwiches (30 filled cookies).

Notes

Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or freeze for 3-6 months.
Keyword Date Syrup, Dates, High Altitude Cookies, Pecan
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