Fall has ended and Winter is now here… for most of us. Every year after Thanksgiving, my husband and I fly to our go-to island in the Caribbean for some much-needed rest and relaxation. 

With many regrets, we arrived home just this week. We always try to take as many days as we can, but how many exactly depends on my husband’s work. This time we got to take eight days. When you take two travel days off, it is not much time, but we make the most of it. The island we go to is so beautiful and the people are just lovely. Many know us personally, which makes the week even nicer.

We had an exciting run in with Mother Nature while we were there.  We took a sail on a very, very small catamaran, piloted by the water sports specialist at our hotel. It was beautiful and sunny when we first left. The catamaran only had a sail, no motor, and the wind was perfect. After about 20 minutes, the sun had gone in and as our guide pointed out, it started raining where we left off. We stayed out an extra 15 minutes, thinking the rain had passed, before making our way back.

We actually sailed right into a huge rainstorm! That was not even the worst part. There was no wind at all, so there we were for about 30 minutes, sitting in a huge Caribbean rainstorm in the middle of the ocean! The wind started to come back slowly, but were barely moving. A 20-minute trip turned into an hour and a half nightmare. We were soaked from head to toe and freezing too. Have you ever heard how it rains for 5 minutes in the islands, then the sun comes out? Not this time. We were laughing about it the whole time, even though we were cold and wet. This was definitely an experience we will never forget.

Now our vacation has ended, and my thoughts are on Christmas and menus and shopping lists. This is one dessert that will be on my menu this year. It is a simple recipe that packs a huge amount of flavor. The shortbread has such perfect crumbly edges. The sugars make it sweet (but not too sweet), and the vanilla, cinnamon and salt are savory perfection. The pecans offer a welcome crunch and a different texture. I hope you add them to your holiday menu, your guests will be delighted.

Note:  Baked cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.

The recipe is courtesy of Sally’s Baking Addiction and will make about 24 pieces of shortbread that will offer your guests the perfect holiday morsel.

Ingredients for Pecan Shortbread Cookies:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 
2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (100g) finely chopped pecans

For rolling:

1/4 cup coarse sugar 
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed until combined and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Beat in the vanilla extract on high speed.

Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

Add the flour, cinnamon, and salt, then beat on low speed until combined.

Beat in the chopped pecans.

The cookie dough may look like it won’t come together, but keep beating, it will come together.

The cookie dough will be thick.

Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and, with floured hands, divide or cut into two.

Shape each half into an 8-inch log, about 2.5 inches in diameter.

The measurements don’t have to be exact.

Tightly wrap the logs in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 3-4 hours and up to 5 days.

Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough. The author prefers to chill hers for 4 hours or even overnight– the colder the dough, the thicker the cookies. (I would also roll the dough into the pecan-sugar mixture before I chilled it. It was hard to get it to stick after it was chilled.)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. 

Set aside.

For Rolling:

You can actually roll the logs before or after chilling them.

Mix the coarse sugar and chopped pecans together on a large plate.

One at a time, roll the log into the mixture.

Press it down so the nuts and sugar stick to all sides.

Slice each log into 12 equally thick cookies and place cookies on baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes or until brown around the edges. 

Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

These cookies come out of the oven very soft. Don’t be fooled, they are cooked through and will harden as they cool.

Cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for 1 week.

It’s that simple!

I wish you all a very