Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Run for the (Four) Roses. It's Kentucky Derby Weekend.

I’m writing this week from a seat high up in the stands of the AllTech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park, in Lexington. Daughter is competing at IHSA Nationals with her college equestrian team and mama didn’t want to miss a chance to go eat one of the best glazed donuts this country has to offer.  And, of course, see my kid ride.

Three of Spalding’s finest glazed donuts. Spalding’s has been around since 1929.

Watching her ride requires such adrenaline output on my end that glazed donuts provide necessary revitalization. So does bourbon. But only after the sun goes down.

And in case you’re worried I’m not getting good enough nutrition, fear not because I went to nearby Red State Barbecue (they didn’t check credentials, so I was allowed in) and got myself a lovely plate of smoked chicken with a side of beer cheese grits and another side of peppery, smoky greens, which were the best part of an already first-rate meal.

You know you’re in Kentucky when there’s burgoo on the menu

Every part of the restaurant--ceilings, chairs, window shades--are signed and graffitied on by guests. The troublemaker in me was tempted to scrawl “Hillary Clinton was here,” and see what would happen, but the people who worked there were too nice and I just couldn’t.

Kentucky Horse Park

In honor of my Kentucky home this week, today’s recipe is a real good ‘un:  Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies. These cookies take a little more work than your average Toll House, but I think you’ll find it’s worth it.

The result is a cookie with a chewy middle and crispy edges, rich with caramel flavor thanks to the alliance of brown butter, bourbon and toasted pecans, and of course plenty of dark chocolate chunks.

ADVANCE WARNING: You’ll need to brown butter and toast pecans an hour or two before you get started with the rest of the recipe. And then the dough should chill a few hours in the fridge before baking. Mind you, no points off if you can’t wait, just know they get better with age, like so many other things. Or so I like to believe.

No other way to kick off Derby weekend

Printable recipe: Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

What You’ll Need:

8 ounces (227 grams) browned butter (see method below)

1 cup (110 grams) pecans, toasted (see method below)

3/4 cup pecan flour (80 grams)(see method below)

1 1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons (234 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar

3/4 cup (160 grams) dark brown sugar

1 egg, room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 generous tablespoons bourbon

1/2 cup (37 grams) chopped toasted pecans (feel free to add more)

12 ounces dark chocolate chunks

What You’ll Do:

To make brown butter:

1. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Once it melts, stir constantly, as it bubbles away. Milk solids will form and fall to the bottom of the pan. The goal is to make them nutty brown, without burning them. This is not the time to check Twitter. Stir and watch and as soon as it looks like your close to the desired color, pour the butter into a bowl. Cover loosely so your cat doesn’t lick it while it’s cooling. Once cool, I put in the fridge to solidify.

To toast pecans:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Pour pecans onto a rimmed baking sheet and bake until they’ve browned ever-so-slightly and smell, well, nutty. This is another case of don’t-leave-the-kitchen-while-they’re-cooking. Remove from oven and let cool.

To make toasted pecan flour:

1. In a food processor with the blade attachment, and using cooled pecans (warm ones will turn quickly to nut butter), pulse the nuts fine. Sweep around the edges of the bowl to make sure all the pecans are evenly chopped. A few too many pulses and you will end up with nut butter.

How to make the actual cookies:

1. In a medium bowl, mix the all-purpose flour, pecan flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

2. Toss the solidified browned butter into the bowl of a stand/hand mixer and beat at low speed to soften it. Add the sugars and continue to beat until light and fluffy. We recipe writers say light and fluffy a lot because we mean it. You should see the mixture actually lighten in color (2-3 minutes). In the case of these cookies, creaming until light and fluffy will help ensure a flatter cookie.

3. Add the egg, vanilla and bourbon and mix until well-blended. Doesn’t the mixture smell nice? Enjoy the smell. It makes you want to drink the bourbon. Is it time to drink bourbon? Should you wait until after you pick up your dog from the groomer? Yes, yes you should.

4. Add the flour mixture in two parts; mix until just blended.

5. Add the chopped pecans and chocolate chunks.

6. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.

When ready to bake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment.

2. Form the dough into large balls (I used a 1 1/2” ice cream scoop). Balls weighed about 40 grams.

3. Place 6 cookie balls on each baking sheet.

4. Now is the fun part: We’re going to make these wrinkly cookies, which takes some fussing, but it helps ensure a caramelized outside and a chewy inside. After 6 minutes in the oven, remove a cookie sheet and thwack it straight down onto your stove top. You should see the cookie spread a little. Reverse sheets top to bottom and put them back in the oven. After 4 minutes, repeat the slamming. After another 2 minutes slam again. Maybe once or twice to really ensure the dough ripples away from the center. After 3 minutes or so check the cookies. They are done when they are browned at the edges and pale and soft in the center (but not jiggly).

Obviously, times vary per oven. Yours may take less or more time. The basic idea is every few minutes or so to give that pan a good thwack to spread the cookie.

Have a sleeping baby or cranky upstairs neighbor and don’t want to smash metal pans? You can leave them to melt on their own. Just remember to switch the pans from top to bottom to ensure even cooking.

5. Let cookies cool on pan for 2 minutes, then remove to cooling rack.

When I got to Lexington I knew I had to get myself a Spalding donut or two. If I drive out to the North Fork, I have to stop at Briermere farms and get an apple pie turnover. In England in summer when visiting the in-laws, I make sure we always have fresh, sweet local strawberries to eat. Do you have a must-have, go-to food specific to a destination? Tell me in the comments!