SALTED CARAMEL PECAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Toast the pecans at 350F for 5-7 minutes until they are fragrant and don't taste raw anymore

Place the butter in a non-stick pan and melt it on medium-low heat. Keep stirring for a few minutes until the butter starts to look brown and develops a caramel-y nutty aroma

Turn the heat all the way to the lowest setting, and add the sugars. Whisk on the lowest setting for 1-2 minutes to start dissolving the sugars

Remove from heat and cool the mixture for ~5 minutes. It should be warm, but not hot anymore

Add the egg and yolk, and quickly whisk to incorporate. Whisk for 1-2 minutes until the mixture becomes light and smooth

Add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt) and fold with a rubber spatula until the flour is almost mixed in. The dough will be runny, don't worry - place in the fridge for 10 minutes while you work on the salted caramel pecans

Place the soft caramels and cream in a nonstick sauce pan and cook and stir on low heat until they form a caramel sauce. Add a little salt to taste. Remove from the heat and add the pecans, getting them thoroughly coated

Remove the cookie dough from the fridge and fold in the chopped chocolate and pecans (save some of both for the top of the cookies). Stop folding as soon as you don't see any unmixed flour and the chocolate and pecans are evenly dispersed

Use a 2" scoop to divide the dough into ~10 balls. If the dough feels too soft, you can refrigerate for a bit longer. Don't apply pressure onto the balls, just gently pull them together. Press chocolate chunks and pecans on top of the cookie balls

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, but ideally 2 hours or longer

Pre-heat oven to 375F (conventional) and prepare a large cookie sheet with parchment paper

Transfer the balls to the sheet, keeping at least 3" between the balls

Bake for 10-12 minutes depending on how soft and gooey you want the cookies to be