Butternut Cookies
Butternut Cookies are soft, chewy, and topped with a sweet rum extract and finely chopped pecans. They’re as easy as they are sweet, and everyone always loves them.
We love nuts in any kind of baked good. Banana bread? Oh, no. It’s banana nut bread. Coffee cake? Throw in those nuts! If you can bake it, it’s always better with nuts. That’s on full display with these cookies.
We use a simple sugar cookie dough recipe packed with butterscotch chips and chopped pecans to make a rich, decadent flavor. Then, we bake them until golden and top them with a simple but delicious vanilla rum glaze and even more pecans. It’s a recipe that tastes far fancier than it really it. Those are the best kind if you ask us!
Table of contents
❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It only uses a few simple ingredients found in your kitchen or your grocery store.
- It’s an easy recipe that takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
- It’s the most decadent cookie recipe you’ll ever eat!
🛒Ingredients
The ingredients for these cookies are all simple baking ingredients that you can find in your kitchen or your local grocery store. These are fancy-tasting cookies with absolutely no fancy ingredients!
Everything you need to make the cookies and the glaze are listed here, but you can find the exact amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.
For the Cookies
- Powdered sugar
- Butter – softened
- Salt
- Flour
- Butterscotch chips
- Chopped pecans
For the Glaze
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
- Rum extract
- Finely chopped pecans
🔪 How to Make Butternut Cookies
Making these delicious butternut cookies is just about as easy as it gets. You just need to do a little mixing, baking, and stirring. That’s all there is to it!
Step 1: Prep
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Step 2: Make the Cookie Dough
Cream the butter, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Then, add the flour and mix. Finally, add the butterscotch chips and chopped pecans and stir until thoroughly combined.
Step 3: Bake
Scoop the dough out in large teaspoon sizes and place them on a baking sheet about an inch apart. Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes until just slightly browned on the bottom. Remove the cookies and cool them completely.
Step 4: Make the Glaze
Add the powdered sugar and rum extract to a bowl and slowly whisk in enough milk to create a runny glaze consistency.
Step 5: Decorate the Cookies
Dipe the tops of the cookies in the glaze or spoon the glaze over them. Then, top each cookie with finely chopped pecans. Let the glaze set and enjoy!
📝Variations
Do you want to change up this recipe and make it your own? Here are some ways that you can do that!
- Rum Extract – You can use vanilla extract instead of rum for the glaze.
- Chopped Pecans – Chopped walnuts, almonds, or pistachios all work well.
- Coconut – Try adding some shredded coconut to the cookies for a tropical flavor.
If you think these butternut cookies look good, then you’ll love our butter pecan snowball cookies.
🥄 Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Mixing bowl
- Baking sheet
🥫 Storage
Store these cookies at room temperature in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. For longer storage, place them in single layers separated by wax paper in an air-tight, freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months.
What to Serve with Butternut Cookies
Serve these cookies to the kids with a glass of milk. Serve them to adults with a cup of coffee or tea or even a dessert wine if you’re feeling fancy. They’re also a delicious dipping item for sweet dessert dips and are great with fresh berries on the side.
💭 Tips
- Be sure your butter is fully softened for the best cookie texture.
- Gradually add your milk when making the glaze. It won’t take much!
- Finely chop your pecans with ease by pulsing them in a food processor.
⁉️ FAQ
Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.
Butternut cookies are a variation of sugar cookies made with added butterscotch chips and chopped pecans for flavor and texture.
One of the easiest ways to make your cookies soft is to remove them from the oven a few minutes before they’re finished baking. Let them cool on the baking sheet, and the carryover cooking time will bake them to soft, chewy perfection.
If your cookies were dry you could have either improperly measured your flour, adding too much, or overbaked the cookies.
You should never refrigerate cookies unless they have ingredients that require it. Refrigerating cookies dries them out.
🍽 More Recipes
Do you enjoy cookies? Then try these delicious recipes:
🧾Recipe Card
Want to make this recipe? Print the recipe card below, or pin this recipe, so you can find it later.
Butternut Cookies
Equipment
- mixing bowls
- baking sheet
- Electric mixer
- cooling rack
Ingredients
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ¾ cup butter softened
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ cup flour
- 6 ounces butterscotch chips
- 1 cup chopped pecans
For the glaze
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 4-5 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon rum extract or vanilla
- ½ cup finely chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- In a medium sized bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and salt.
- Once it is light and fluffy, add in the flour and mix.
- Next, add the pecans and butterscotch chips and mix to just to fully incorporate the chips and nuts evenly throughout the dough.
- Scoop into small balls, large teaspoon in size, and place on a baking tray about an inch apart.
- Place in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes until just slightly brown on the bottom edge.
- Do not overbake.
- Remove and allow to cool before adding the glaze.
- To make the glaze, place the powdered sugar, extract of choice and slowly whisk in enough milk to create a runny consistency for the glaze.
- Either dip the tops of the cookies in the glaze, or spoon over the tops of each cookie and sprinkle a bit of finely chopped pecans on top.
- Place any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
