I found this recipe from a site that shall remain unnamed for the crime of listing “maple-flavored syrup” (gasp) and then “maple extract” (gack) in the ingredients. Yes, we have all had the fake stuff and have likely been subject to the fake flavoring but there is no need! Real maple syrup tastes infinitely better and leaves out those questionable chemicals that dare to emulate a flavor that nature has already perfected. Since I switched around a few of the other ingredients, I tested a batch and brought them out to the crew to try; gone, baby, gone.
I used Cardamom infused syrup [1] in the glaze because it married so well with the pecans but Sugarmaker’s Cut [2] or Cinnamon-Vanilla [3] infused would work just as well.
Maple Pecan Sugar Cookies with Cardamon-Infused Maple [1] Glaze
- 2 ¼ cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup butter, softened
- ½ cup sugar
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ cup ground pecans
Maple icing
- ½ cup confectioner’s sugar
- 1 tbsp milk
- 1 – 2 tbsp cardamom infused [1] (or plain [2]) maple syrup
- ½ cup chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350. Line two cookie pans with parchment.
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add syrup, egg and vanilla and beat until fluffy. Add flour mixture and ground pecans until incorporated.
Place spoonfuls of dough on cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. You can press them into flat rounds or leave them mounded. Bake until lightly browned but still slightly moist in the middle, about 10-15 minutes. Let cool on a rack.
Prepare the glaze by placing the confectioner’s sugar in a small bowl and adding the milk. Add the maple syrup until you reach a consistency that will drizzle well from a spoon but isn’t too watery. Place the cooled cookies very close together on a tray and drizzle the glaze over all of them at once. Sprinkle the finely chopped pecans on top of the glaze and let them set.