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Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

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Soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies with little bits of caramel and salt all come together to create this favorite cookie. Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookie!

Stack of Salted Caramel Cookies

Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens! Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies tied up with strings…these are a few of my favorite things!

Whew! That was a mouth full, but let me tell y’all something…if Julie Andrews had taken a bite of one of these babies, it would totally explain the whole singing and twirling with joy in a windstorm on a mountain top! Wowser!

Last week I had this idea to take my basic amazing chocolate chip cookie recipe and add those wonderful little Kraft caramel bits, some coarsely chopped pecans, and sprinkle them with little coarse salt. Creating a “Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie”.

Now I know there’s a salted caramel overload going on, but rightly so! Not since jelly joined peanut butter has there been a better pairing! There is just something about a little sharp bite of salt with that creamy caramel. It’s divine! 

Sometimes I have ideas and they are epic fails! EPIC FAILS! It happens…a lot! It’s just part of being a baker/cook. Other times I have ideas, and they are an EPIC WIN! This was a WIN! A Gigantic WIN! I’m so happy it turned out how I had hoped!

salted-caramel-chocolate-chip-cookie-in-the-hand

How To Make Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe makes a LOT of cookies! 72 cookies! (See why I had to call in reinforcements?!) I generally only do half of this recipe, but I knew I would be “sharing” (wink, wink) these…(that is such a lie)…so I went with the regular recipe! (I wish I even felt a twinge of guilt for all the cookie consuming I’ve done in the last 36 hours…nope not one bit!) 

I did not add the caramel bits until after all the rest of the dough was blended together!

Cream together your butter and sugar. Once nice and fluffy, add your eggs and vanilla. Next, add in your dry ingredients. The flour, baking soda, then the secret ingredient…dry instant pudding! The pudding is going to make these cookies extra chewy and soft! Next, add in your chocolate chips and your coarsely chopped nuts.

salted-caramel-chocolate-chip-cookie-dough

After the dough is all mixed, add in the caramel bits.

Tip: You can find them on the baking aisle by the chocolate chips. I stirred them in with a big wooden spoon, huffing and puffing, making sure they were well blended in. You may have to call Superman for this task! I was getting a real work out!

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking sheets. 

Tip: You may want to use parchment paper as the caramel in these cookies melts and gets a little sticky. Clean up was a breeze just tossing the parchment paper away. I was able to use the same sheet for every batch.

Using a cookie scoop, place a scoop of the cookie dough onto the parchment paper and then sprinkle with coarse salt.

Tip: I had very coarse salt, coarser than I actually wanted, so I placed it in a plastic bag and used my meat mallet to beat it down to smaller crystals. It worked like a charm. Don’t go crazy with the salt, but do make sure you have a good sprinkling. You want to taste that bite of salt! It makes the cookie, trust me! My first batch Mars informed me didn’t have enough salt! So I went back to the “salt table” and added more the next time.

Pop into the preheated oven and bake for 10–12 minutes, switching cooking racks half was through. Set your timer for 5 minutes and then switch cookie trays from top to bottom and bottom to top.  You’ll end up with evenly baked cookies every single time…

Salted Caramel Cookie dough ball on the baking sheet.

I did have a few cookies where the caramel was melting out from the sides. This was a really easy fix! I just used a butter knife to gently push it back into the cookie, making them round again. Worked like a charm every time.

You’ll want to let these cool for a little bit. The caramel in them makes them softer than a normal cookie, and they will want to fall apart if you try to move them too soon. Allow them to cool for about 5 minutes then move them.

salted-caramel-chocolate-chip-cookie-after-baking

Once they have cooled, move them onto your cooling rack and allow them to finish cooling. (Yeah! Good Luck with that! Mars and I were seriously doing the “hot cookie-melted caramel in the mouth” dance around the kitchen because they smelled and looked too good to wait! It was totally worth it! Lol)

salted-caramel-chocolate-chip-cookie-on-cooling-rack

There you have it! Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies. In my humble opinion, the very best cookie I have ever made! EVER! I’ve made a lot of cookies in my day! Even Mars and my friend would agree that these are pretty amazing cookies!

It’s like a cookie addict’s dream! They are so easy to make, so delectably rich and gooey, with just enough crunch around the edges to make them absolutely perfect! You have got to try these cookies!

I promise you won’t be disappointed. Just don’t hate me when you can’t stop eating them, or you have to wear your sweatpants for a few days after! Completely worth the sacrifice! Be sure to have lots of cold milk on hand! Yum!

Great Cookie Recipes

Have a Great Day! Happy Nesting!

Norine's Picture with Signature
Yield: 72 cookies

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies are delectably rich and gooey. Packed with caramel, chocolate, nuts and sprinkled with salt they are like a cookie candy bar! The BEST cookie you will EVER have!

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Inactive Time 1 hour 13 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 cups butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
  • 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 cups mini-semisweet chocolate chips
  • 2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
  • 1 1/2 bags Kraft caramel bits
  • coarse salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, or in your mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add in the vanilla. Blend in the flour, baking soda, and vanilla instant pudding mixes. Finally mix in the chocolate chips and nuts. Stir in the caramel baking bits.
  2. Drop cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto parchment lined cookie sheets. Sprinkle with coarse salt.
  3. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes. Rotating cookie sheets on oven racks half way through baking time. Edges should be golden brown.
  4. Remove from oven allow to cool for 5 minutes. Push any "leaking" caramel back towards the cookie with a metal butter knife.
  5. Place cookies on cooling rack. Store in air tight container or zip lock bag.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

36

Serving Size:

2 cookies

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 344Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 225mgCarbohydrates: 39gFiber: 2gSugar: 25gProtein: 4g

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Tom

Sunday 5th of September 2021

It's been years I've been searching for this specific kind of cookies, trying to live up to my expectations. Thank you so much for fulfilling my wish !

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Wednesday 8th of September 2021

Hi Tom! I'm so happy I could make your cookie wishes come true! This is a favorite at our Nest...and now you know why! lol Thanks for taking the time to send me this message. You made my day!

Norine

Angelia

Friday 3rd of March 2017

Oh my goodness absolutely delicious cookies. Just took out of the oven this recipe is a keeper!

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Friday 3rd of March 2017

Hi Angelia! Thank You! Can I come over and have one? lol Okay all joking aside...thanks so much for your sweet words! I love this cookie recipe SO much! It's really hard to explain to people just how amazing the combination of the chocolate, caramel, and salt is together! I'm so glad you love the recipe! It's our favorite too! Ya made my day. Thanks for sharing! Have a fantastic weekend! :)

Chelcie

Wednesday 26th of October 2016

I can't wait to try these!

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Wednesday 26th of October 2016

They are seriously the BEST cookie I have ever had in my LIFE! If you make some...remember where I live! ;) lol

The Better Baker

Tuesday 11th of October 2016

You're so cute! How perfect to use that song as a start for this glorious post. I would love every crumb of every bite of this fabulous cookie. Oh my!! SO happy you shared with us at Weekend Potluck. Pinning!

[email protected]

Tuesday 11th of October 2016

Thank you SO much! I absolutely LOVE the Weekend Potluck and all you wonderful ladies! You are all such amazing women and such fantastic cooks! I love sharing your blogs and the Potluck with my "Nesters" every week! Thank you again! You made my day! ;)

Collette

Saturday 8th of October 2016

Oh my goodness. I made the salted carmel cookies and took them to a luncheon after my granddaughter's baptism. Everyone loved them and asked for the recipe. I'll be referring them to your blog. And yes, it's a very big batch. Actually, every one of your recipes look delicious. I'll be trying a bunch of them. Thanks for sharing your talent.

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Sunday 9th of October 2016

Thank you Collette! I'm so happy that everyone loved them! Just so you know you can make up the cookie dough, minus the caramel, and freeze the dough until later. Thaw it out and then add in the caramel bits! It's also a really easy recipe to cut in half. I do it all the time because it does make so many cookies, but perfect for a big function! Congratulations to your sweet granddaughter on her baptism! Thanks for your comments and for visiting! :)

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