Mouthwatering Salted Caramel Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I’ve always been the type of person who can’t choose between sweet and salty. Why pick one when you can have both? That’s exactly how I feel about these cookies. They’ve got everything I crave rolled into one perfect bite.

The idea came to me when I was cleaning out my pantry last month and found a bag of pecans, some sea salt, and leftover caramel sauce from a dinner party. I figured why not throw them all into my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe? My kids thought I was crazy at first, but after one bite, they were asking me to make them again.

The best part? You don’t need any fancy ingredients or techniques. Just your basic cookie dough with a few simple additions that make all the difference. The caramel gets gooey, the pecans add a nice crunch, and that little sprinkle of sea salt on top ties everything together. Trust me, once you try these, regular chocolate chip cookies will seem pretty boring.

What Kind of Chocolate Should I Use?

For these cookies, you’ll want to use a mix of dark and milk chocolate, which gives you the perfect balance of rich cocoa flavor and creamy sweetness. You can buy chocolate bars and chop them yourself, or use chocolate chips if that’s what you have on hand – both work great. When choosing dark chocolate, look for something in the 60-70% cocoa range so it’s not too bitter against the sweet caramel. If you only have one type of chocolate at home, don’t worry – you can use all dark or all milk chocolate and the cookies will still turn out delicious.

Options for Substitutions

These cookies are pretty forgiving when it comes to swaps, so here are some options if you need to make changes:

• Dark and milk chocolate: You can use whatever chocolate you have on hand – semi-sweet chips, white chocolate, or even butterscotch chips work great. Just keep the total amount around 6 oz.
• Pecans: Walnuts, almonds, or hazelnuts are all good swaps for pecans. You can also leave the nuts out completely if you prefer or have allergies.
• Soft caramels: If you can’t find soft caramels, you can make a quick caramel sauce by melting ½ cup sugar until golden, then adding 3 tbsp cream. Let it cool before using.
• Light brown sugar: Dark brown sugar works fine and will give you a slightly richer flavor. You can also mix white sugar with 1 tbsp molasses if that’s all you have.
• All-purpose flour: Stick with all-purpose flour for these cookies – other flours like whole wheat or almond flour will change the texture significantly and aren’t recommended.
• Cream: Heavy cream is best, but you can use half-and-half or even whole milk in a pinch for the caramel mixture.

Watch Out for These Mistakes While Baking

The biggest mistake with these cookies is not browning the butter properly – you want it to turn golden and smell nutty, but watch carefully because it can go from perfect to burnt in seconds.

Another common error is adding the caramel mixture while it’s still too hot, which can melt your chocolate chips and create a messy dough, so let it cool for a few minutes before mixing it in.

Don’t skip roasting the pecans even if they’re pre-roasted, as a quick 5-minute toast in a dry pan brings out their flavor and prevents them from getting soggy in the dough.

Finally, resist the urge to overbake these cookies – they should look slightly underdone in the center when you pull them out, as they’ll continue cooking on the hot pan and become perfectly chewy rather than hard.

What to Serve With Salted Caramel Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies?

These rich, indulgent cookies are perfect on their own, but they’re absolutely amazing with a cold glass of milk for dunking. I love serving them alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream or even coffee ice cream to play up those caramel notes. For a cozy evening treat, pair them with hot coffee, chai tea, or hot chocolate – the warmth really brings out all those sweet and salty flavors. You can also crumble them over ice cream sundaes or use them as a base for a quick cookie parfait with whipped cream and fresh berries.

Storage Instructions

Keep Fresh: These cookies stay soft and chewy when stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. I like to toss a slice of bread in the container to help keep them extra soft. Just make sure they’re completely cooled before storing so the caramel doesn’t get sticky.

Freeze: You can freeze the baked cookies in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months, or freeze the cookie dough balls on a baking sheet before transferring to a bag. Frozen dough balls can go straight from freezer to oven – just add an extra minute or two to the baking time.

Warm Up: If you want to enjoy them warm again, pop them in a 300°F oven for about 5 minutes or microwave for 10-15 seconds. The caramel gets all gooey again and the chocolate gets melty – it’s like having fresh-baked cookies all over again!

Preparation Time	30-40 minutes
Cooking Time	10-12 minutes
Total Time	40-52 minutes
Level of Difficulty	Medium

Estimated Nutrition

Estimated nutrition for the whole recipe (without optional ingredients):

• Calories: 2750-2950
• Protein: 28-34 g
• Fat: 170-190 g
• Carbohydrates: 305-335 g

Ingredients

For the cookie dough:

• 10 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 tsp salt (or use 1/2 tsp for less saltiness)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 oz dark chocolate, chopped
• 3 oz milk chocolate, chopped

For the caramel pecans:

• 12 werther’s soft caramels
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• 3/4 cup roasted pecans, halves and pieces
• Salt (to taste)

Step 1: Toast the Pecans

• 3/4 cup roasted pecans, halves and pieces

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).

Spread the roasted pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them for 5-7 minutes, or until they are fragrant and no longer taste raw.

Cool slightly.

Toasting makes the pecans crunchier and brings out their flavor—an extra step that really elevates the cookies.

Step 2: Brown the Butter and Dissolve the Sugars

• 10 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

In a non-stick pan over medium-low heat, melt the butter while stirring constantly.

Continue cooking and stirring until the butter starts to look brown and develops a caramel, nutty aroma.

Immediately turn the heat down to the lowest setting.

Add the light brown sugar and granulated sugar to the browned butter.

Whisk on low heat for 1-2 minutes so the sugars start to dissolve.

Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool for about 5 minutes; it should be warm but not hot.

Step 3: Mix Wet Ingredients, Add Dry, and Chill Dough

• 1 large egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt (or use 1/2 tsp for less saltiness)

Whisk the egg and egg yolk into the cooled butter-sugar mixture until well combined and smooth, about 1-2 minutes.

Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, then fold them in with a rubber spatula.

The dough will seem runny at this stage.

Place the mixture in the fridge to chill for 10 minutes, just while you prepare the caramel pecans.

Chilling helps prevent overly spread-out cookies.

Step 4: Make Salted Caramel Pecans

• 12 Werther’s soft caramels
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• salt (to taste)
• toasted pecans from Step 1

While the dough chills, combine the soft caramels and heavy cream in a non-stick saucepan.

Cook over low heat, stirring gently, until the caramels fully melt and form a smooth sauce.

Add salt to taste.

Remove from heat, then add the toasted pecans from Step 1, stirring until they are thoroughly coated in the caramel.

I like to add an extra pinch of salt here to make the caramel really pop.

Step 5: Add Chocolate and Caramel Pecans to Dough

• 3 oz dark chocolate, chopped
• 3 oz milk chocolate, chopped
• salted caramel pecans from Step 4

Retrieve the chilled dough from the fridge.

Gently fold in the chopped dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and caramel pecans from Step 4, reserving a small handful of chocolate pieces and a few caramel pecans to place on top of the cookies later.

Stop folding as soon as the dough is just combined and you no longer see streaks of flour.

Step 6: Shape and Chill Cookie Dough Balls

• cookie dough with chocolate and caramel pecans from Step 5
• reserved chocolate chunks from Step 5
• reserved caramel pecans from Step 5

Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, portion the dough into about 10 balls without compacting too much.

Gently press the reserved chocolate chunks and caramel pecans onto the top of each cookie ball.

Place the balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, but ideally 2 hours or longer to help the cookies hold their shape and develop flavor.

If your dough seems very soft, chill for a bit longer.

I find that longer chilling time gives the cookies a chewy center and rich flavor.

Step 7: Bake the Cookies

Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C).

Transfer the chilled cookie dough balls to a prepared parchment-lined cookie sheet, spacing them at least 3 inches apart.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, depending on how soft and gooey you prefer your cookies.

Let them cool slightly before enjoying.