Butter Pecan Biscotti Recipe

These butter pecan biscotti are made with browned butter and toasted pecans for a rich, nutty flavor. They’re twice-baked for a crisp texture, then finished with a drizzle of chocolate. They’re perfect with coffee or tea, sturdy enough for gifting and shipping, and great to keep on hand whenever you want something a little different from a traditional cookie.

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Pook’s Pantry participates in affiliate programs. If you make a purchase through one of my links, I may earn a small commission. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

What Makes These Butter Pecan Biscotti Different?

These biscotti get their rich, nutty butter pecan flavor from two key ingredients: browned butter and toasted pecans. Browning the butter deepens its flavor, while toasting the pecans brings out their natural nuttiness. Together, they create the classic butter pecan flavor without relying on butterscotch or artificial flavoring.

Brown Butter

Brown the butter for deeper flavor. Browning the butter gives these biscotti a richer, nuttier flavor that really makes the butter pecan flavor stand out. Cook it until the milk solids turn golden brown and smell nutty, you’ll notice specks of milk solids that will settle in the bottom of the pan — these are your cues to take it off of the heat. You are looking for a rich amber color. It can scorch quickly, so you don’t want to walk away from it once it starts to brown. Let it cool before adding it to the dough.

Toasted Pecans

Toasting the pecans brings out their nutty flavor. Toasting nuts brings out their flavor, which is the goal for this butter pecan biscotti. It also reduces the amount of water in them, making them crispier. Place them on a lined baking sheet and bake for 8 – 10 minutes. You’ll notice that they will darken slightly and they will be very fragrant. As with the butter, they can burn quickly once they’ve started to brown, so keep an eye on them.

“I have baked your Butter Pecan Biscotti countless times and it always comes out perfect. I actually use it as a base recipe for any biscotti I make… no other recipes compare!”

-Alta

Ingredients

• Unsalted butter — Browning the butter develops a rich, nutty flavor that gives these biscotti their signature butter pecan taste.
• Light brown sugar — Adds sweetness and a subtle molasses flavor that complements the browned butter.
• Eggs — Bind the dough and provide structure for the twice-baked cookies.
• All-purpose flour — Forms the base of the dough and gives the biscotti their structure.
• Baking powder — Provides a little lift so the biscotti aren’t overly dense.
• Salt — Balances the sweetness and brings out the flavor of the butter and pecans.
• Vanilla bean paste — Adds warm vanilla flavor.
  • Substitution: You can use vanilla extract instead of paste.
• Pecans — Toast them before chopping to bring out their natural nuttiness and deepen the butter pecan flavor.
• Chocolate (optional) — Melted chocolate drizzled over the cooled biscotti adds a rich finish. Use semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, if desired.

How to make

Here’s a quick summary of how to make butter pecan biscotti. Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full recipe. 

1. Brown and cool the butter, toast the pecans. Set both aside. Mix dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
2. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet. Add pecans once dough start to come together.
3. Turn the dough out onto the countertop and shape the dough into two logs.
4. Bake the logs. Cool slightly, gently slice, then bake the biscotti a second time.

How to Slice Biscotti Without Breaking Them

The best advice on this topic is to use a sharp, serrated knife. The serrated knife that I own is the one I just linked to. It isn’t inexpensive, but I’ve had this knife for 22 years and it still slices through bread, biscotti, or whatever else I throw at it, with ease.

One of the reasons I prefer this particular knife to other serrated knives is the blade. It is thinner than many other knives, which means it easily glides through whatever you’re slicing. The blade on most serrated knives, like a bread knife, is thicker and they don’t glide through things quite as easily.

When we’re talking about delicate cookies that we are trying not to break, that makes a difference. The blade on a regular knife will not work as well, it tends to crush the biscotti instead of slicing.

The other important factor is to let the cookies cool between the first and second bake. The cookies need to set enough to be sliced — think about trying to pick up a hot cookie right out of the oven. It usually falls apart, doesn’t it? Same concept here, you need to let them cool enough to handle before trying to slice.

Tips for Making Biscotti

How to avoid over-mixing the dough

Once the flour is mostly incorporated, stop mixing. Overworking the dough can make the biscotti tougher than intended. When you’re adding the pecans, a few remaining streaks of flour are fine because you’ll continue mixing as the nuts are incorporated.

How big should I shape the biscotti dough logs?

When forming the logs of dough, you’ll want them approximately 3 inches wide, and 3/4 – 1 inch tall. The dough will expand as it cooks. If you make the dough logs much bigger than that, the biscotti will be enormous, and you risk an uneven bake.

Pro Tip: If you want to make your biscotti extra crunchy, let them dry out in a warm oven with the door cracked open.

Butter Pecan Biscotti Recipe FAQ’s

Can You Ship Biscotti?

Biscotti are perfect for mailing to friends and family. They are a sturdy cookie that won’t break during shipping, so they are my “go to” for sending as gifts. Let them cool completely, then pack them snugly in an airtight container with cushioning to keep them from shifting during transit.

I like to pack them in these cookie boxes before packing them into shipping boxes. For more tips on packing cookies to prevent breakage and keep them fresh, see my guide on how to ship cookies without breaking them.

Variations and substitutions

• Chocolate – White chocolate, or dark chocolate both pair well with these biscotti.
• Nuts – Walnuts can replace the pecans in this biscotti recipe. They’ll give the cookies a slightly more earthy, less buttery-nutty flavor than pecans. Toast the walnuts before adding them to the dough for the best flavor.
• Nut-free – If you live in a nut-free house, or you are baking for someone with nut allergies, you can omit nuts and add chocolate chips, seeds or dried fruit instead.

Helpful tools and equipment

• Heavy duty sheet pans that hold up to high temps without warping.
• Parchment paper sheets are MUCH easier to use than tearing pieces off of a roll.

If you enjoy these butter pecan biscotti, try my gingerbread biscotti and almond biscotti with golden raisins recipes next. You can find all of my biscotti recipes in one place.

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Originally published 12/18/16, most recent update 10/27/26.