Secret Recipe: Make Beaucoup Bakery’s Sable Cookies At Home

A sweet treat to hold you over between visits to Beaucoup.

By Betty Hung / October 8, 2024

Who says sables are just for the holidays? These sweet, diamond-shaped treats sparkle any time of year, in our humble opinion, especially when given a twist by ever-talented pastry chef Betty Hung, co-owner of Beaucoup Bakery. Here, pecans replace typical almonds, but get nutty in your own way by subbing in walnuts or hazelnuts if you prefer.

Makes 36 2-inch cookies

Ingredients

1½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup pecans, toasted and finely crushed (reserve 2 tbsp for the topping)
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp salt
⅔ cup unsalted butter, room temperature ½ cup + 2 tsp granulated sugar 2 tbsp whole egg, room temperature 1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp bourbon (optional)
Egg wash (1 egg yolk whisked with 1 tbsp water and a pinch of salt)

METHOD

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, pecans, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Set it aside until ready to use.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar, beating on medium speed until the mixture becomes pale (about 3 minutes). Add the egg, vanilla and bourbon, and mix on medium speed for another 3 minutes, until incorporated. Stop mixing, and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the remaining dry ingredients, and start the mixer on low. Mix for about 30 seconds, just until there is no more dryness in the dough. If necessary, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on low for 10 more seconds.

3. Take the dough from the bowl and shape it into a square roughly 6 inches across. Wrap it with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for at least an hour or overnight. When you are ready to roll out the dough, preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

4. Divide the dough into two pieces for easier rolling. Lightly dust your dough and work surface with flour. Start rolling the dough from the centre to the edge, rotating the dough 90 degrees after each roll and dusting with flour if necessary. Roll the dough to about ¼ inch thick. Cut out diamond shapes, roughly 2 inches wide in the middle, and place them about an inch apart on the baking sheets.

5. Lightly brush a layer of egg wash on the cookies, avoiding the edges, and sprinkle the reserved pecans on top. Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the edges and bottoms are golden brown. Cool the cookies before serving. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to a week.