Earl Grey, White Chocolate & Toasted Pecan Cookies
By Jessie
Updated: October 22, 2026
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By: Jessie
Updated: October 22, 2026
Rate This Recipe:
These Earl Grey, White Chocolate & Toasted Pecan cookies feel like a warm, comforting hug in every bite! Brown butter adds a rich, nutty depth, while Whittard Earl Grey tea brings a delicate, citrusy fragrance. Generous chunks of white chocolate melt into sweet pools, and toasted pecans add a satisfying crunch. They’re just made for chilly autumn and winter days, especially with a big mug of tea.
Your Ingredients List
- Whittard Earl Grey Tea: Gives these cookies that lovely, unmistakable Earl Grey flavour, with subtle citrusy notes. It complements the sweet white chocolate and buttery pecans perfectly, and infusing it into the butter means you get that delicious Earl Grey flavour running through every bite. I used loose-leaf tea however, you could break open Earl Grey teabags instead.
- Unsalted butter: Gives the cookies their soft texture and buttery base. Browning the butter first releases a rich, nutty flavour that takes the cookie dough to a whole new level.
- Caster sugar: Adds sweetness and helps the edges crisp up with extra chew.
- Light brown sugar: Brings a warm, caramel-like flavour and keeps the middles soft.
- Vanilla extract: Rounds out all the warm, sweet flavours beautifully.
- One egg + one egg yolk: The egg binds everything together, while the extra yolk boosts richness and chewiness.
- Self-raising flour: Gives the cookies a gentle lift and spread without making them cakey.
- Salt: Just enough to balance the sweetness and enhance all the flavours.
- White Chocolate: Chop the chocolate bars chunky so your cookies have big chunks of melted white chocolate throughout.
- Pecans: Bring a lovely crunch and a rich, nutty flavour. Toasting them first is a must!
RECIPE NOTES
TASTE
Buttery cookies with subtle notes of fragrant Earl Grey, sweet white chocolate and toasted pecans. A little flaky sea salt on top balances all the sweetness.
TEXTURE
Golden and crisp around the edges, with soft, chewy centres and plenty of melted chocolate and crunchy pecans. These cookies are a textural delight!
SKILL
Super easy! Plus, the cookie dough only needs chilling for 1 hour.
SERVES
Makes around 12 cookies.
How To Make Earl Grey, White Chocolate & Toasted Pecans Cookies
Step 1: Ingredient prep
First up, let’s get a few things ready. The pecans get a quick toast in the oven, which brings out all that lovely buttery, nutty flavour. Once cool, give them a rough chop, then chop the white chocolate into a mix of big and small chunks. The bigger pieces melt into gorgeous chocolate puddles, and the smaller chunks hold their shape better for a pretty looking cookie!
Now for the browned butter, which is what gives these cookies so much flavour. Letting the butter cook until golden means the milk solids caramelise, giving us that lovely deep, nutty flavour. Take it off the heat, stir in the Earl Grey Loose Leaf Tea and leave it to steep for 10 minutes. This infuses the butter with all those lovely flavours before we strain it, gently pressing the tea leaves to get as much flavour out as possible.
Step 2: Make the cookie dough
Once the Earl Grey butter has cooled a little, it’s time to bring everything together.
To the Earl Grey browned butter, add the brown sugar, white sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix until you have a lovely glossy, caramel-coloured mixture that smells delicious! Then fold in the flour and salt until you’ve got a soft, slightly sticky dough.
Set aside a handful of the chopped chocolate and pecans – we’ll use these to decorate the cookies once baked. Then fold the rest into the cookie dough until well mixed through. Cookie dough, tick!
Step 3: Scoop and chill the cookie dough
Now we’re onto the chilling part, and I promise it’s worth the wait! Chilling the dough gives the butter time to firm back up, which stops the cookies from spreading too quickly in the oven. It also helps give you those lovely thick, soft and chewy centres we’re after. Scoop the dough and shape into roughly 5cm balls, then arrange on a lined baking tray and chill in the fridge for 1 hour. Enough time to clean up and have a cuppa!
Step 4: Bake, shape and add the finishing touches
Bake 5–6 cookies at a time at 180°C fan for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are golden and crisp but the centres still look soft. Cookies will continue to cook through and firm up as they cool down, so pulling them out slightly underbaked will result in a chewy, gooey middle.
TOP TIPS FOR PICTURE PERFECT COOKIES
While still warm, use a round cutter or glass to swirl around the outside of the cookies to shape them into perfect circles. Then press the reserved white chocolate chunks and toasted pecans into the tops.
I finished my cookies with a sprinkle of edible blue cornflower petals from the Whittard Earl Grey mix and a little flaky sea salt. Such a pretty finishing touch!
FAQ’s for baking Earl Grey White Chocolate Cookies
I wouldn’t! Yes it’s an extra step, but browning the butter gives the cookies a lovely deep, nutty flavour that works so well with the Earl Grey. It’s definitely worth the few extra minutes.
White chocolate works really well here because its creamy sweetness balances the fragrant Earl Grey and nutty pecans, but you can swap it for dark chocolate if you prefer. Dark chocolate and earl grey is a fab flavour pairing.
Yes, you can. Or you could swap them for walnuts, hazelnuts or macadamia nuts.
Chilling firms up the butter, stopping it from melting too quickly in the oven, meaning less spread and thicker cookies. Plus, it helps the flavour develop for a tastier cookie.
Keep them in an airtight tin at room temperature for 4 days. You can also freeze them individually wrapped in clingfilm and foil for up to 2 months. Defrost at room temperature before eating.
Earl Grey, White Chocolate & Toasted Pecan Cookies
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Print Pin Rate this RecipeIngredients
- 190 grams Unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons Whittard Earl Grey Loose Leaf Tea or the contents of 3 earl grey teabags
- 150 grams Light brown sugar
- 80 grams White caster sugar
- 1 medium Egg room temperature
- 1 medium Egg yolk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 240 grams Self-raising flour
- 0.5 teaspoon Salt
- 250 grams White chocolate
- 100 grams Whole pecan nuts
- Flakey sea salt for sprinkling on top
Instructions
Start by prepping the mix-ins:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C fan / 200°C conventional. Spread the pecans on a baking tray and toast in the oven for 5-8 minutes until fragrant. Leave to cool, then roughly chop them up.100 grams Whole pecan nuts
- Roughly chop the white chocolate into chunks (some big, some small).250 grams White chocolate
Now make the cookie dough:
- Start by browning the butter. Measure the butter into a saucepan and place over medium-low heat. Stir until melted. Continue to heat for 8-10 minutes, swirling the pan occasionally, until the melted butter is a golden amber colour and has a nutty aroma. Be careful not to overheat, otherwise the butter will burn and taste bitter. There should be brown flecks in the bottom of the saucepan, these are browned milk solids and hold lots of toasty flavour!190 grams Unsalted butter
- Remove from the heat and stir in the Earl Grey tea leaves. Leave to infuse and cool down for 10 minutes. Now pour the butter through a fine-mesh sieve into a large mixing bowl, pressing gently on the tea leaves to extract as much butter as possible.3 tablespoons Whittard Earl Grey Loose Leaf Tea
- Add the brown sugar, caster sugar, egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract to the cooled butter. Mix until combined.150 grams Light brown sugar, 80 grams White caster sugar, 1 medium Egg, 1 medium Egg yolk, 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- Gradually fold in the self-raising flour and salt to form a soft cookie dough.240 grams Self-raising flour, 0.5 teaspoon Salt
- Fold most of the white chocolate chunks and chopped pecans into the dough, reserving a handful of both for finishing the cookies once baked.
Shape and chill the cookie dough:
- Scoop up heaped tablespoons of cookie dough and shape into a ball (they should be roughly 5 cm in diameter). Arrange on a lined baking tray as you go.
- Cover and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
Bake the cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C fan / 200°C conventional. Arrange the chilled cookie dough balls on lined baking trays, leaving plenty of space between each so they have room to spread out. I bake 5-6 at a time on separate trays.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are golden but the centres still look slightly soft.
- Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, press the reserved white chocolate chunks and extra toasted pecan pieces into the tops of the cookies. The residual heat will soften the chocolate slightly and create beautiful pools across the surface. Finish with a sprinkle of flakey sea salt.
- Leave the cookies on the baking tray for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and enjoy warm or at room temperature with a steaming cup of Earl Grey tea.
