Tasty Tuesday: Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 

 

Thank you Baker by Nature for today’s recipe….

Prep: 20 minutes     Cook 10 minutes

Cool: 2 hours     Yield: 2 dozen

 

Ingredients

For the Buttered Pecans:

• 1 and 1/2 cups pecan halves, finely chopped
• 1 and 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

For the Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies:

• 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, melted until browned
• 2 and 1/3 cups all-purpose flour (don’t pack the flour into the measuring cup!)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 Tablespoons bourbon
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 12 ounces semi-sweet OR dark chocolate, roughly chopped into chunks
• 24 pecan halves, for decoration, optional

Instructions

For the Buttered Pecans:

• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add in chopped pecans and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Set aside until needed.

For the Brown Butter:

1. Place the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat and cook for about 3 minutes – stirring almost constantly – until the butter has browned.
2. Pour the brown butter into a heatproof bowl, being sure to scrape all of the “toasted” bits into the bowl as well.
3. Place the bowl in the refrigerator for 2 hours, or until the butter is at room temperature. You’ll know the butter is at room temperature when you press a finger into the top and it makes a slight indentation. It should not be liquid at all.
4. Once the butter is at room temperature, you’re ready to get baking!

For the Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside until needed.
2. In a large bowl combine flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda; whisk well to combine then set aside until needed.
3. In a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine browned butter and both sugars and beat on medium-speed until light and fluffy; about 2 minutes. Add in the vanilla and bourbon and beat until combined. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating for 15 seconds after each addition. Turn mixer off. Using a wooden spoon or sturdy rubber spatula, gently fold in the flour, stirring only until the flour begins to disappear. Fold in the chocolate chunks and buttered pecans.
4. Roll 3 tablespoon sized scoops of dough between your palms to form a ball (they should be big; almost a 1/4 cup), then place on prepared sheets (make sure to leave enough room in between each cookie for inevitable spreading). Continue this process until all the dough has been rolled. Press a pecan on the top of each cookie dough mound, if desired.
5. Place baking sheets in preheated oven, one at a time, and bake for 9 to 10 minutes, or until golden at the edges but still soft in the middle. Repeat with all cookie dough. Sprinkle cookies with sea salt right when they come out of the oven. Let cookies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire wrack to cool completely.

Remember if you submit a recipe to me and I use it in my blog, YOU will receive a FREE gift from me….What is your favorite recipe during the holiday season?

Pack up those holiday cookies and take them with you as a hostess gift to your next party.  Thirty One’s Little Carry Alls are perfect for this…These novelty Littles Carry-All Caddys are also the perfect solution for organizing the little things in your life. From office supplies to eating utensils and cosmetics, this caddy helps keep your life in order by keeping everything right at your fingertips. Great for gifts, small toys, crafts, office desks, candy and seasonal home décor.  Lots of choices for everyone in the family.  You can even use these as a stocking stuffer instead of traditional stockings.

Holiday Marketing

The week after Thanksgiving and my email inbox is overflowing with all kinds of offers and suggestions on what to get everyone on my Christmas list.  Most of them I delete while others I may glance out briefly to see if there is really anything that I or anyone on my list needs.  In most cases, nothing has jumped out at me.  In the midst of all of this, I have been thinking about what I am offering my customers this holiday season.  Are they just glancing at my emails and hitting the delete button?  Are they thinking about ordering and then they lose focus?  Here are some ideas from “the self-employed.com” website:

• Offer Holiday Bundles – not only will you increase sales and your commission check (if you are in direct sales) but it provides a discount to your customers.  There are many talented consultants with Thirty One who design bundles every month with the monthly customer special.  You can check out some of them on my Facebook Page.  I also have a VIP group for my customers and hostess where I am offering the 12 Days of Thirty One Christmas.  Each day has a different special available for that 24-hour period.
• Upsell Stocking Stuffers – you know that little something to add to a person’s stocking. Most direct sales companies have items that are $5 or less that are perfect for this.  Thirty One has rosettes ($5) , nail files ($2), Key FOB ($5), and custom address labels ($5). You could bag your stuffer up in a small timeless memory pouch ($5) and then wrap the present in the larger matching pouch.  Additional sales – bigger commission check.  The little things add up.  These smaller items are also perfect for teacher’s gifts, secret Santa or just a little something to give that surprise guest over the holidays or throughout the year.

I use Facebook and am now starting to use Linked In to expand my network circle.  Social media is HUGE now with everyone posting their company specials and looking to attract new or more customers.  Honestly, I am not sure if there is a tried and true way to make the most of the holiday shopping season without getting somewhat lost in the shuffle.

The greatest success comes from building relationships with your customers.  Remember those customers that always wait until the last minute to order – call them, remind them of the deadline to make sure they don’t miss out.  Have a wish list from a hostess or customer, ask her who you could contact on her behalf.  This is a HUGE help for those husbands who never know what to get their wives.  I even have “HINT, HINT Honey” pictures for wives to share with their hubby or special someone.

Off to make some phone calls to ensure that my customers receive their orders by Christmas.  What have you been doing to stand out from the crowd this holiday season?  Share your ideas with us.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!