These chewy chocolate chip cookies use melted butter to keep things quick and easy (no waiting for butter to soften!) With toasted pecans and bittersweet chocolate chips.
Melted butter is a useful shortcut when you don't have time to bring cold butter to room temperature for homemade cookies (we also use this technique in our brown sugar cinnamon cookies!)
You don't need a stand mixer for this recipe - just a large mixing bowl and a sturdy spoon or spatula!
Ingredients
Scroll to the recipe card below for a full ingredients list with exact quantities.
Before you jump in, there are a few things we want to highlight:
- Melted butter makes this dough quick and easy. No waiting for butter to soften on the counter: Just pop it in the microwave and you're off to the races!
- Use dark or light brown sugar. They both work great here!
- Chocolate chips. We love Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Chips; you can also use mini chocolate chips or a roughly chopped bar of baking chocolate. We prefer chocolate with a slightly bitter note (like bittersweet, dark chocolate chips, or semi-sweet chocolate chips).
Use a kitchen scale
Measuring dry ingredients by volume (with cups) is notoriously unreliable: Because each person measures one cup a bit differently, it's easy to accidentally use too much flour, sugar, etc., and alter the texture of your cookies (see an example in our cinnamon cookies recipe). For accurate results, use a kitchen scale to follow the gram measurements in the recipe below. No kitchen scale? Measure your flour with the scoop and level method for best results!
Variations and Substitutions
- Adjust the mix-ins! Swap some or all of the mix-ins here for white chocolate chips, M&Ms, mini marshmallows, dried cranberries, toasted walnuts, almonds, pistachios, or your other favorite cookie ingredients (see our kitchen sink cookie recipe for ideas!)
- Brown your butter before adding it to the cookie dough for an extra layer of deep, nutty flavor. Read more: How to brown butter.
- No butter? Use melted coconut oil (à la our butterless chocolate chip cookies), vegetable or canola oil, or olive oil (like we do in our dark chocolate sea salt cookies recipe).
Instructions
Toast the pecans
Toast pecans in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Cook them for just a few minutes - stirring constantly so they don't burn - until they're fragrant and have darkened ever-so-slightly in color.
Pro Tip: If you're short on time, you can skip toasting the pecans (although this step brings out a ton of flavor!)
Make the cookie dough
Mix melted butter, vanilla, eggs, and sugars together in a large bowl (Image 1, above) until smooth (2). Add dry ingredients (3) and mix until just combined (4).
Stir chocolate chips and toasted pecans into cookie dough (5). You should have a thick, fairly soft dough (6).
Don't worry if it looks a little softer or looser than other cookie doughs! It will settle and thicken a bit within a few minutes of mixing (as the melted butter starts to solidify).
Pro Tip: Reserve a handful of chocolate chips and toasted pecans to press into the tops of cookies before baking. This ensures the mix-ins are visible on each cookie, giving them a picture-perfect look!
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Use a cookie scoop (we love this 3-Tablespoon scoop) to portion out the cookie dough (7). Leave an inch or so of space between each cookie on the cookie sheet (8).
If you like, press a few chocolate chips and toasted pecans onto the surface of each cookie. This step is purely for aesthetics: You can skip it if you're short on time (or just don't want the hassle!)
Bake
Bake cookies at 375° for 10-13 minutes, until they're lightly browned around the edges. Let them cool for a few minutes right on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool fully.
Pro Tip: Pull the cookies out before they look all the way "done" in the middle. The cookies might look a little puffy and domed in the centers, but don't worry: They'll settle as they cool and you'll be left with soft, chewy centers.
Should I chill this cookie dough?
You can bake this cookie dough as soon as it's mixed, but if you have some time, you may want to chill the dough for additional flavor and a chewier texture!
Quick chill (30 minutes)
If you would like to chill your cookie dough, we recommend placing the entire bowl of cookie dough in the fridge for 30 minutes before scooping and baking. This gives the flavors some time to develop. It also lets the butter solidify a bit for a denser, chewier cookie that doesn't spread as much in the oven:
A short, 30 minute chill gives you the flavor and texture benefits of chilled cookie dough, while ensuring the dough stays soft enough to be easily scooped with a cookie scoop.
This 30-minute chill also gives you a taller, chewier center:
Longer chill (24-72 hours)
If you prefer a deeper, more caramelized flavor, you can chill this cookie dough for up to 3 days (72 hours). If we're making this cookie dough that far in advance, we prefer to scoop the cookies immediately after the dough is mixed (as opposed to chilling the full bowl of cookie dough, which makes it more difficult to scoop later).
Store the scooped cookie dough in an airtight container in the fridge. When you're ready to bake, just transfer the cold cookie dough to a cookie sheet and bake normally.
A Few FAQs
This recipe makes 24-30 large cookies (formed with a 3-Tablespoon cookie scoop) or 72-90 bite-sized cookies (formed with a 1-Tablespoon cookie scoop). Use any size cookie scoop you like here! Keep in mind that if you use a different size cookie scoop, you will likely need to adjust the baking time.
Yes! Mix the dough as directed, shape it into dough balls, and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Transfer refrigerated cookie dough balls directly to a lined baking sheet, and bake normally.
To freeze cookie dough, scoop the dough into balls and place them on a baking sheet or large plate lined with a piece of parchment paper, waxed paper, or a nonstick baking mat. Place the cookie dough in the freezer for 2-3 hours, until frozen solid. Transfer frozen cookie dough balls to an airtight container and return to the freezer until you're ready to bake.
To bake frozen cookie dough balls straight from the freezer, we recommend reducing the oven temperature to 350° F (a lower temp helps frozen cookies spread out more evenly!)
Pro tip: You can also use this make-ahead method for our white chocolate pistachio cookies!
If you're keeping cookies on the counter for a few days, they can start to dry out a little bit. To keep them fresh and help them retain moisture, throw a slice of fresh bread into the airtight container with the cookies: The sugar in the cookies will draw the moisture out of the bread, keeping the cookies fresh (and the bread will quickly go stale!)
Yes! Like classic chocolate chip cookies, these cookies freeze quite well. Let them cool completely, then store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 4 months. Let frozen cookies defrost for a few hours on the counter when you're ready to eat them.
Yes! If you prefer to use a stand mixer or hand mixer in your baking, you can certainly use those appliances for this recipe.
For just a few cookies, we recommend following our small batch chocolate chip cookie recipe (you can add a handful of toasted pecans to those cookies if you like!)
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 24-30 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Description
These chewy chocolate chip pecan cookies use melted butter to keep things quick and simple!
Ingredients
- 120 grams roughly chopped pecans (1 cup)
- 170 grams unsalted butter, melted (1 ½ sticks )
- 8 grams vanilla extract (2 teaspoons)
- 2 eggs
- 130 grams white granulated sugar (⅔ cup)
- 150 grams brown sugar (about ¾ packed cup)
- 330 grams all purpose flour (about 2 ¾ cups)
- 4 grams kosher salt (1 teaspoon)
- 5 grams baking soda (1 teaspoon)
- 175 grams bittersweet chocolate chips (1 cup)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375° Fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or a sheet of parchment paper.
- Toast the pecans in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 5-7 minutes until pecans are fragrant and have just barely darkened in color. Set aside.
- Whisk melted butter, vanilla, eggs, white sugar, and brown sugar together in a large mixing bowl until smooth.
- Add flour, kosher salt, and baking soda to the bowl; stir until just combined.
- Reserve a handful of chocolate chips and pecans for topping the cookies before baking (optional). Stir remaining chocolate and pecans into the cookie dough.
- Use a 3-Tablespoon cookie scoop to portion out the dough; place each dough ball 1 inch apart on your prepared baking sheet. Gently press a few reserved chocolate chips and pecan pieces into the top of each cookie. Note: This recipe makes quite a few cookies; you will likely need to work in batches.
- Bake cookies at 375° F for 10-13 minutes until lightly browned around the edges. Remove cookies from oven and let cool right on the baking sheet for 10-15 minutes, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling. Cookies may look a bit puffy right out of the oven, but the centers will sink down as they cool to form a beautiful, chewy texture.
- Serve immediately or store cooled cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days.
Notes
Please use a kitchen scale. Measuring by volume (with cups) is notoriously unreliable. For best results, use a kitchen scale and follow the gram measurements provided above.
Substitutions. The mix-ins here are very forgiving: Adjust the exact amount of chocolate chips or pecans to your liking. You can also swap some or all of the mix-ins for other chocolate options (white chocolate chips, chopped baking chocolate), nuts (pistachios, walnuts, peanuts), or M&Ms. Add a pinch of flakey sea salt to these cookies just before baking if you like. Use oil or melted coconut oil instead of melted butter.
For thin, crispy cookies, reduce the flour here by 30 grams (about ¼ cup).
Rest the cookie dough if you like. As the dough sits on the counter, it will thicken slightly (due to the melted butter cooling). Once mixed, let the dough sit on the counter for 10-15 minutes for softer, chewier cookies. For deeper flavor and chewier, thicker cookies, chill the cookie dough in the fridge for 30 minutes before scooping and baking.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 224
- Sugar: 15.9 g
- Sodium: 130.4 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Carbohydrates: 27.5 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 30.7 mg
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