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Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies

If you like your cookies crispy on the edges, chewy in the middle, and studded with chocolate and nuts, these chocolate chunk pecan cookies are destined to become a new favorite!

Chocolate chunk pecan cookies on serving platter

Easy Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

It’s difficult to top a chewy chocolate chip cookie, but add in some crunchy pecans and you’ve just succeeded in taking that classic cookie to the next level. If, like me, you’re a proud pecan fan, you’re going to want to make these chocolate chunk pecan cookies ASAP.

One of the beauties of these cookies is how easy they are to make. They are one of those elusive one-bowl recipes for when you want to bake but you don’t want to clean up endless bowls, beaters, etc. (Honestly, that’s most of the time for me these days.)

These particular cookies are from Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey, the same cookbook that brought us these ridiculously decadent and delicious sticky biscuits. They are that perfect crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside cookie, packed with chocolate and toasty pecans.

All I can say is: make them and make them soon.

Overhead view of chocolate chunk pecan cookies stacked on platter and on countertop

Here’s what makes these chocolate chunk pecan cookies such a hit:

  • Minimal effort, maximum reward. Don’t you love those recipes where you only have to put in a small amount of work and the payoff is an absolutely delectable treat? That’s exactly what you get with these cookies.
  • A chocolate chip cookie for pecan lovers. Walnuts are often the go-to for adding to brownies and chocolate chip cookies, but why not switch things up and add pecans instead? We all know pecans are the superior nut!
  • Simple ingredients. You don’t need anything fancy to make these cookies; you likely have almost everything you need already in your pantry.
Overhead view of ingredients for chocolate chunk pecan cookies

What You’ll Need

Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.

What Is the Best Way to Toast Nuts?

Toasting nuts is a great way to enhance their flavor. It’s an easy process that takes just a few minutes. 

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Spread the pecans in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, then bake for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring once. (Watch them closely, as they can go from lightly toasted to burnt in no time!) Once the nuts are fragrant and golden brown, transfer them from the pan to a plate or bowl to cool.

How to Make Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies

You’ll need to chill the cookie dough before baking it, so keep that in mind when planning your baking. Although it needs a minimum of 30 minutes in the refrigerator, you can chill it longer than that, which means you can start the recipe the night before and bake the cookies the next day.

  • Melt the butter. Place the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat in 30-second increments at half power until the butter has melted. Let it cool slightly.
  • Mix the wet ingredients. Stir the sugars into the bowl with the melted butter. Add the salt, vanilla, and eggs and stir until the mixture is smooth. 
  • Finish the dough. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and baking powder, then fold in the chocolate and pecans.
  • Chill. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for about 30 minutes, or until the dough is firm.
  • Prepare. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
  • Form the cookies. Scoop out 3 tablespoons of dough and roll it into a ball. Set it onto the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough, leaving 3 inches between the cookies. 
  • Bake. Place one pan in the oven at a time and bake for 14 to 18 minutes, or until the cookies are golden around the edges but still soft in the center.
  • Cool. Set the pans on a wire rack and allow the cookies to cool for about 5 minutes. Then, transfer the cookies from the baking sheets directly to the wire rack to finish cooling. (Learn more: Why Every Baker Needs Wire Cooling Racks)
Overhead view of chocolate chunk pecan cookies on wire rack, plate, and countertop

Tips for Success

Read over my baking tips for beginners, then follow these additional pointers for perfect chocolate chunk pecan cookies:

  • Don’t over-bake. Over-baked cookies will still be delicious, but they won’t have that chewy center we all love. If the edges of your cookies are getting too browned, reduce the baking time by a few minutes for the next batch.
  • Cool the pans if you’re reusing them. If you don’t have enough cookie sheets for all of your dough, you’ll need to let them cool completely between batches. Putting cookie dough on hot pans will cause them to spread or over-bake on the bottom.
  • Don’t skip the chilling. You want to start with chilled dough for best results, so make sure you let the dough chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before portioning and baking. This also keeps the cookies from spreading.

Variations

As with other chocolate chip cookie recipes, there’s a lot of room for customizing these chocolate chunk pecan cookies as long as you stick with the original proportions of the recipe. Try these ideas:

  • Add white chocolate or milk chocolate chips in addition to or instead of semi-sweet.
  • Make them gluten-free by swapping in a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend for the all purpose flour.
  • Give them more of a crunch factor by substituting half of the pecans with toffee bits.
  • Use browned butter instead of simply melting the butter in the microwave.
Overhead view of chocolate chunk pecan cookies on wire rack

How to Store

These cookies keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days. 

Can I Freeze This Recipe?

You can freeze these chocolate chunk pecan cookies either before or after baking. 

To freeze the cookie dough, portion it into balls and arrange them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer for several hours, or until frozen solid. Transfer to a zip-top bag, label, and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake them according to the original recipe instructions, simply adding another minute or two to the baking time to account for the dough starting out frozen.

To freeze already baked cookies, allow them to cool completely and place in an airtight container or zip-top bag. Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to serve them.

Two chocolate chunk pecan cookies stacked on countertop with additional cookies on wire rack in background

Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies

Yield about 28 cookies
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Additional Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies take a traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe and add a crunchy pecan twist to it!

Pile of chocolate chunk pecan cookies on parchment-lined wire rack

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 & 1/4 cups (270g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 cups (340g) semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chips
  • 2 cups (240g) coarsely chopped pecans, toasted

Instructions

  1. Place the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat at half power in 30-second increments until the butter has melted. Set aside to cool slightly.
  2. Add both sugars to the melted butter, and stir until combined. Add the salt, vanilla, and eggs, stirring until smooth. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and baking powder just until combined and a soft dough forms. Fold in the chocolate and pecans.
  3. Cover and refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes, or until cool and firm.
  4. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
  5. Using 3 tablespoons at a time, portion the dough and roll into balls. Place on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 3 inches between the cookies.
  6. Bake one pan at a time for 14 to 18 minutes, or until the cookies are golden around the edges but a little soft in the center.
  7. Place the pans on a wire rack, and allow the cookies to cool for about 5 minutes. Then, transfer the cookies from the baking sheets directly to wire racks to cool completely.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth.

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    46 Comments on “Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies”

  1. These look sooooooooooooo worthy of diet breakage. Thanks for the excuse to indulge!

  2. Woah, soooo amazing! I have been wanting to use pecans in chocolate chip cookies for a while, now it’s meant to be!

  3. Looks very appetising, its thicker than regular choc chip cookies, adding to chewiness!

  4. looks great…and easy! what size scoop did you use and how long did you bake?

    (i.e. what does smaller and larger in the recipe mean – are the large size cookies that bake 18 minutes a tblsp scoop?)

    • non, I updated the recipe to be a little clearer. I made 2-inch cookies and baked them for 14 minutes. The original recipe was for giant cookies scooped with 1/4-cup measuring cup. Those will definitely take longer to bake!

  5. These look so tasty! Thanks for the post.

  6. Well seeing as how I’m on a diet (hah), I’m trying to only indulge in diet-breaking worthy treats. And these definitely look worthy.

  7. Thanks for your tweet, I was very happy!
    It looks delicious, as always!!!… I can´t wait to bake them.

  8. Oh wow. Those look sooooo good! Have you tried Levain’s cookies in NYC? Yours kinda look like theirs…aka I will NEED to try them!

  9. This is a new one for me I haven’t seen pecans and chocolate chips together in a cookie. They look amazing and I can’t wait to give them a try.

  10. These are great! I made them today, following Jennifer’s suggestions regarding size and baking time, and mine looked just like the photo on the website, are a little cakey inside, crispy outside, and taste divine!

  11. Just make these today since I am craving sweets! Holy yum. It is so much better than alton brown chocolate chip cookies!!! 😛 thanks for a wonderful new recipe.

  12. Thank you for sharing this recipe … I made them over the weekend for my hubby (did the same thing … kept some at home and sent the rest to his office). They are delicious and definitely worth making!!! Mine too look just like your pictures.

  13. Oh man, my dad and boyfriend would be willing to fight to the death over those cookies…A tempting prospect…

  14. I’ve got to make these…and soon

  15. Pictures make me want one right now!

  16. This is my first trip to your blog. Thank you for sharing this recipe. I love gooey cookies but I think I would share them too in order to save my waistline!

  17. I love how the chocolate is just oozing out of the cookie. I mean that must have been the perfect moment.

  18. What is it about chocolate and pecans that make them such a delicious combination?

  19. These look amazing. I can’t wait to give them a try! They look like a perfect thickness.

  20. These look amazing. I can’t wait to give them a try!

  21. YUM-E! (as my daughter would say) Those look crazy good!

  22. those looks so delicious, i’m a huge fan of chocolate chunk cookes, with a nice glass of organic milk 🙂 I’ll have to try this recipie but I’m not a big fan of pecans so i may try it with peanuts instead and see what happens!

  23. Oh. My. Goodness. These look amazing! Wow–can’t wait to try them!

  24. THIS LOOKS AMAZING!!!! 🙂

  25. Wow… these look so chewy! Can’t wait to make them for my toddler…

  26. I like the simplicity of your Chocolate Chunk Pecan Cookies – the recipe, the directions and the photo, expecially your cover photo. It all ties together. Brilliant.

  27. I must say, the camera you use or wherever these photos come from are excellent! The quality looks so real..i could taste it! I can’t wait to try this recipe out and hopefully mine come out as delectable looking as those!

  28. These look really good. Pecans are the best cookie nut, although Macadamias would come in second, especially if you’re looking for something rich & decadent. The poor walnut gets neglected at my house.

    The size of these cookies would be deceiving though, I’d probably eat 20 of them before I’d realize it…

  29. Been in a total funk for the last month or so… and these cookies have seem me through some tough times, professionally! Just wanted to say thank you for posting these… dare I say… BEST-EVER cookies… and thank you for not being here to watch my waist grow bigger! 🙂

  30. Congratulations for your beautiful blog (which I’ve only just discovered…).

    These cookies must be truly delicious..will have to bake them soon!
    thank you for sharing the recipe!

    ciao
    Martina x

  31. I’m going to make these as gifts this father’s day!

  32. I made these cookies and they were a hit! They were absolutely delicious. I made a second batch and used walnuts. Those turned out just as great! Thanks for sharing this recipe!

  33. I made these cookies for my family and they were a hit as well….now I have to make them every other day!!

  34. I made these today. Mine did not end up like the picture. I was hoping for the thick hunk…but they looked like normal cookies. Delicious…but not like your picture. Did I perhaps make them too big?

  35. These are BEAUTIFUL! My daughters will love them!

    http://foodiekim.com/

  36. I am always looking for Chocolate Chip Recipe to fall in love with! Perfect for me to take to the tailgate this weekend!

  37. wow these look absolutely delicious….I love cookies!!!!

  38. Hi!! These cookies are my favorite!!! I wanted to ask if I can substitute the butter for something else? Thank you.

  39. Hi Jennifer! It’s me again 😀
    Ok so i didn’t use the shortening after all, didn’t want to risk it. However I did bake some today and they were “flat” they didn’t look as pretty and thick as on picture. I have baked these before sometime during winter last year and they came out just as picture above, but these last times I have been baking them I have not gotten the same result as the first time… I am wondering what I did wrong? Any ideas?

    • Hi, Gladys. Flat cookies are usually a result of over-beaten butter or warm dough. An easy thing to try is refrigerating your dough for a bit (anywhere from an hour to even a couple of days) before scooping and baking.

  40. Thank you!! I will keep that in mind next time 🙂 I did leave the dough in fridge longer than 45 min but I may have over beaten the butter.

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