National Pecan Sandies Day is upon us. Maybe it’s time to rename our website. Something like, “I Bet You Didn’t Know That Every Day is Some-Type-of-Dessert Day and We’re Going to Celebrate Them All Whether You Like It Or Not,” but that name is probably already taken. It’s catchy though, right? Anyway, it’s time to focus on the cookies. Sure, you see Pecan Sandies every day in the cookie aisle at the store — that’s just us assuming you not only go to the store every day but also pass through the cookie aisle every day — but what if we told you that you could make them yourself? Mind-blowing, we know. This recipe takes about 30 minutes from start to finish, but if you’re into additional decorating — a great way to keep kids entertained — if could take longer.
Ingredients
- 1 cup margarine, softened
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups chopped pecans
- ½ cup white sugar, for decoration
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- In a large bowl, cream together the margarine, vegetable oil, one cup of white sugar and confectioners’ sugar until smooth.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
- Stir in the vanilla until it is all combined well.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture.
- Mix in the pecans until they are evenly distributed.
- Roll the dough into 1-inch balls, and roll each ball in remaining white sugar.
- Place the cookies two inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
- Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are golden.
- Remove from cookie sheets to cool on a wire rack.
If you’re rolling out one-inch balls, then this recipe will give you 96 cookies. Then again, we don’t know anyone who can roll out an exactly-one-inch ball, so that’s just an estimate. And you can go as crazy as you’d like with the decorating: Drizzle melted chocolate over the top or, even, better, dip half of the cookie into chocolate (using a cool cookie, of course, so the chocolate doesn’t run). Begone store-bought cookies! Happy National Pecan Sandies Day, everyone!
