I recently purchased "The Cookie Book" by Rebecca Firth aka DisplacedHousewife and I can't get over the gorgeous photography & the large selection of cookies. It literally has cookies for ANY occasion, whether you want a simple chocolate chip cookie, or a decadent seasonal cookie. There's close to 80 cookie recipes! That's insanity packed into a small cook book! Anyways, I'm totally in love with it and have already tried one of her recipes. I was going to go for the snickerdoodle, but this pecan brittle bark was calling my name... more like screaming my name haha. I don't like using corn syrup so I substituted it out for honey, but boy are these to die for. I also cut the recipe in half because 30 cookies would be gone before the next day and I'm really not trying to put on that much winter weight! Make them ASAP, because you NEED them, trust me.


PECAN BRITTLE BARK COOKIE RECIPE adapted from The Cookie Book

makes 15 large cookies


INGREDIENTS

for the pecan brittle bark 

  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/6 cup honey
  • 1/8 cup water
  • 3 tbsps. unsalted butter (room temp & cut into 3 pieces)
  • 1 cup raw pecans
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 1 1/4 cup dark chocolate

for the cookie dough 

  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 4 tbsps. unsalted butter (room temp)
  • 1 large egg (room temp)
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup bread flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt


DIRECTIONS

for the pecan brittle bark 

  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a medium saucepan, stir together the honey, sugar, and water.
  • Cook on medium heat till the sugar dissolves (~5mins) and reaches 250°F on a candy thermometer.
  • Stir in the butter and heat till 300°F making sure it does not burn or get too hot.
  • Remove the syrup from the heat & stir in the pecans, vanilla extract, baking soda, and salt.
  • Immediately spread the mixture on the baking sheet to ~1/4 inch thick.
  • Let it cool and harden (~1-2 hours) then chop into 1/2 inch chunks (set aside in a bowl).
  • Melt the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals, stirring in between.
  • Pour the chocolate on the same prepared baking sheet & sprinkle the brittle on top.
  • Let the chocolate cool to room temp then place in the fridge to finish hardening.
  • Once hardened, coarsely chop the bark into pieces & place back in the fridge till it's ready to use.

for the cookie dough 

  • Set your oven rack to the highest available slot & preheat oven to 350°F & line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, powder & salt and set aside.
  • In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar till light and fluffy (~4mins).
  • Add in the egg, mixing on low, making sure tp scrape down the sides of the bowl so that all is incorporated.
  • Add in the vanilla extract & oil, then beat for another minute.
  • Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture till JUST incorporated.
  • Toss in the bark and make sure it is evenly distributed.
  • Spoon heaping 2 tbsp. balls onto prepared baking sheet & bake for 12-13 mins.
  • Let the cookies cool for 5-10 mins before removing from the baking sheet