Pecan-Butterscotch Tuiles
This recipe is much easier to make than conventional tuiles because the batter isn’t as fussy and it doesn’t need to be painstakingly spread out on a baking sheet with a spatula. The heat of the oven takes care of the spreading, making sure that the cookies expand to the right dimensions as they bake. No, unfortunately, the oven can’t mix up the batter for you, but maybe in a few years kitchen technology will make that an option. The cookies can be coaxed into an endless variety of shapes warm out of the oven—they can be curled over a rolling pin for traditional tuiles, wrapped around the handle of a wooden spoon into cigar-like tubes, or molded over the bottom of an overturned teacup into nifty cookie cups for holding ice cream. You’ll have to do that part yourself, too, but then again, why let your oven have all the fun?
Recipe information
Yield
makes about 12 cookies
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. (Don’t use silicone baking mats because the cookies may be difficult to remove.) Set a rolling pin for shaping the tuiles on a folded dish towel to steady it and have ready a wire rack.
Step 2
In a small saucepan, warm the butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup over low heat until melted and smooth. Stir in the pecans and flour.
Step 3
Drop level tablespoons of batter on the prepared baking sheets, placing only 4 on each sheet and spacing them evenly apart. Slightly flatten the batter with dampened fingers.
Step 4
Bake one sheet at a time, rotating the baking sheet midway during baking, until the cookies are deep golden brown, about 7 minutes.
Step 5
Let cool briefly, about 1 minute. Using a metal spatula, lift each cookie off the baking sheet and drape it over the rolling pin. (If the cookies cool and harden before you have time to shape them, they can be softened by putting them back in the oven for 30 to 45 seconds.) Let cool on the rolling pin, then transfer the tuiles to a wire rack. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Step 6
Serve the tuiles within a few hours of baking.
Storage
Step 7
The batter can be made up to 1 week in advance and stored in the refrigerator. You can store the baked tuiles in an airtight container until ready to serve later the same day.
Variation
Step 8
You can substitute toasted almonds or walnuts for the pecans.
