Name: Pecan Shortbread Cookies (Reduced Sugar)
Total time: 3 h 50 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup (4 ounces/113 grams) Sucanat; 1 cup pecans; 8 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled; 2 large egg yolks; 2 tablespoons water; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 2¼ cups (11¼ ounces/319 grams) all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; ½ teaspoon salt; ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1 large egg white mixed with 2 tablespoons water

Why This Recipe Works

We cut the sugar from 6 grams to just 3 and replaced the typical brown sugar with Sucanat to give the cookies a gentle molasses flavor. To boost flavor further, we added cinnamon for its bold, warm presence along with a little nutmeg for depth. The addition of vanilla helped to round out the flavors. Tasters liked the nutty flavor of browned butter, but it negatively affected the texture of the cookies—with so little liquid already in the recipe, we couldn't afford to cook the water out of the butter. Instead, we decided to process some of the pecans in a food processor and incorporate them into the dough to provide some of the nuttiness we would have gotten from browned butter. To streamline the recipe, we processed the rest of the dry ingredients in the food processor, followed by the wet. Chilling the dough logs for at least 2 hours ensured that the dough could be sliced and baked into cookies with clean, crisp edges. A pretty pecan half placed on top of each cookie made them look worthy of company (and a quick egg wash ensured they stayed firmly on the cookies).

Before You Begin

You can learn more about Sucanat in this article. Do not skip grinding the Sucanat in step 1 or the cookies will have a dense, hard texture.

Instructions

Working in 3 batches, grind Sucanat in spice grinder until fine and powdery, about 1 minute. Reserve 40 prettiest pecan halves for garnishing. Whisk melted butter, egg yolks, water, and vanilla in bowl until combined.

Process remaining pecans in food processor until nuts are coarsely ground, about 20 seconds. Add ground Sucanat, flour, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg and process until combined, about 10 seconds. With processor running, add butter mixture and process until dough comes together, about 25 seconds.

Transfer dough to clean counter, knead until smooth and cohesive, and divide into 2 equal pieces. Roll each piece of dough into 6-inch log, about 2 inches thick. Wrap each log tightly in plastic wrap and place upright in tall drinking glass. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 log of dough at a time, slice into ¼-inch-thick cookies, turning log every few slices to prevent sides from flattening, and space ¾ inch apart on prepared sheets. Brush cookies with egg white mixture, then gently press reserved pecan halves into center of each cookie.

Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until edges of cookies are beginning to brown and set, 16 to 19 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Let cookies cool completely on sheet. Serve.