It only has six ingredients, but this recipe for lacy pecan cookies yields a big batch perfect for bake sales, potlucks, or impromptu house parties. Combining pecans, sugar, and potato starch in the food processor creates a flavorful base and delicate crumb (all-purpose flour could never, but if you’re in a pinch, cornstarch makes a suitable swap) that just so happens to be gluten-free.
Customize the cookie dough by adding ½ tsp. of almond or vanilla extract to the egg whites. Swap the ground cinnamon for allspice, ginger, instant espresso powder, or any other spice you might find in a pecan pie. As is, these will bake up crispy and golden brown; for a softer, chewier texture, you can adjust the dry ingredients using equal parts white sugar and light or dark brown sugar. Go a step further and use chocolate chips instead of the reserved pecans to make nutty, gluten-free take on chocolate chip cookies, or try half toffee chips and half toasted pecans for Christmas cookie vibes. To cool the baked cookies, slide the entire sheet of parchment off the cookie sheet and onto a cooling rack. Bake the next round on fresh parchment while the first batch sets. Sprinkle the tops with flaky sea salt for an extra hit of flavorful crunch. Serve the cookies as is, or tuck them into a bowl of vanilla ice cream.