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Best Spirited Butternut Pecan Cookies

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plate of pecan cookies with fresh picked butternut squash

Sweetly spirited butternut pecan cookies

Today’s recipe is brought to you by NOT the great pumpkin, but the butternut squash. It’s not that I am not tempted to share some great pumpkin idea, but if your inbox is anything like mine you have been completely inundated with pumpkin recipes. Besides that I did not plant sugar pumpkins this year. I like to rotate my crops and the butternut squash did not disappoint.

butternut squash growing in garden

There is nothing like a fresh picked butternut squash. The biggest difference from store bought? The tender skin! There is no battle slicing through it nor the fear of chopping off a finger. Most of the dozen or so I got from just 1 seed grew quite large, but my final pick was a wee 5-inches.

butternut squash sliced in half seeds scooped out

Chopped, cooked and smashed this little beauty yielded just 1/2 cup of butternut squash puree. It was more than enough for these sweetly spirited butternut pecan cookies.

ingredients

Yes! It is a spirited cookie. I guess you could say a certain Sailor inspired this one. He has been around a lot lately. The recipe also calls for a few other complimentary flavors like vanilla bean paste, pumpkin pie spice, toasty pecans and demerera sugar. The cookie bakes up soft, but not cake-like, on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside from the sprinkle of sugar.

unbaked cookies topped with pecan and sprinkled with sugar

Here is a tip. If you are roasting or boiling up a butternut squash for dinner set aside 1/4 cupful for these cookies before adding any seasoning. You will be glad you did.

plate of baked pecan cookies
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Spirited Butternut Pecan Cookies


  • Author: Lisa Keys
  • Total Time: 27 minutes
  • Yield: 3 dozen 1x
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Description

tender tasty and dare I say “healthy”


Ingredients

Scale

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine sea salt or table salt

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 egg yolk

¼ cup mashed butternut squash

1 tablespoon Jack Daniel’s whiskey

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

2 tablespoons demerera or turbinado sugar

36 pecan halves


Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 350F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In medium bowl, whisk flour, spice, baking soda and salt; set aside. In large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar for 5 minutes or until light and well mixed. Add egg yolk; blend well. Add squash, whiskey and vanilla bean paste; blend well.
  3. Add flour mixture; stir with a spatula or wooden spoon until well blended.
  4. Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon drop cookie batter onto prepared baking sheet.
  5. Press 1 pecan into center of each cookie. Sprinkle each with a pinch of demera sugar.
  6. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown around edges.
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 12 minutes
  • Category: cookies
  • Method: baking

Keywords: snack, pecans, butternut squash, Jack Daniel’s, whiskey

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag me @goodgriefcook — I can’t wait to see what you’ve made!

my grand daughter sitting in pile of pumpkins
Have a great week from my real favorite pumpkin

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. mistimaan

    October 22, 2017 at 12:47 pm

    Loved your yummy recipe………will try it 🙂

    Reply
    • Lisa

      October 22, 2017 at 1:04 pm

      Thanks. I hope you will give it a try.

      Reply
  2. Lou

    October 22, 2017 at 2:52 pm

    Ha! Great closing picture!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      October 22, 2017 at 3:28 pm

      Isn’t she the cutest. I just spent the weekend with her while Cait and Sam at a wedding. We had so much fun.

      Reply
  3. Carol Walsh

    October 22, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    These look delicious! And that little Annabelle is so darn cute!
    PS: can I substitute vanilla extract for the paste?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      October 22, 2017 at 7:48 pm

      Good question and yes to the vanilla extract. Use an equal amount. We are both so blessed to have sweet grandchildren <3

      Reply

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