Fall-Worthy Maple Pecan Sweet Potato Cookies Recipe

When it comes to fall flavors, pumpkin often steals the spotlight, but there's another orange ingredient that deserves a spot in the seasonal baking lineup: sweet potato. While they may not get the same seasonal attention, sweet potatoes bring a natural sweetness and richness to baked goods that's hard to beat, plus they're widely available and easy to work with. This love for sweet potatoes is what inspired these fall-worthy maple pecan sweet potato cookies from recipe developer Jessica Morone. The subtle, earthy flavor of sweet potatoes pairs beautifully the warm spices of cinnamon and nutmeg, the touch of maple adds sweetness, and pecans add a slightly sweet, nutty taste, making these cookies a perfect canvas for fall-inspired flavors. 

"I love these cookies because they are soft and chewy, with a hint of maple syrup and the satisfying crunch of toasted pecans," Morone says, adding, "If you're looking for a cookie that captures the essence of fall but offers something a little different from the usual pumpkin spice, these cookies are just the treat you need." These are perfect for enjoying with a cup of coffee on a chilly morning, or as a sweet treat at any autumnal gathering. 

Before you start this recipe, you will want to gather up all the ingredients. You will need to grab some unsalted butter, granulated and brown sugars, an egg, vanilla extract, maple syrup (pure maple syrup, not pancake syrup!), sweet potato puree (you could make your own with fresh potatoes or use canned sweet potato puree), all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and chopped pecans. 

Add the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl. Beat until combined and fluffy.

Add the egg, vanilla extract, maple syrup and sweet potato puree and beat until smooth.

Add in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and beat until combined. The dough will be pale.

Mix in the chopped pecans until incorporated. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets.

Bake in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown.

Let the cookies cool, then serve.

We used canned sweet potato puree in this recipe, which you can buy at most supermarkets. Using the canned version makes this cookie recipe super easy, but if you want to make puree from scratch, you definitely can. You only need ¾ cup of sweet potato puree for this recipe, so only one large sweet potato would be necessary to make the puree (or you can make extra and use it in other sweet potato recipes).

To make the puree, peel the sweet potato completely and then cut it into 1-inch cubes. Place the cubed sweet potatoes in a medium pot and cover with water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the sweet potato cubes are easily pierced with a fork. Drain the sweet potato cubes and let them cool down a bit, then transfer them to a food processor. Process until the sweet potatoes become a completely smooth puree, then continue with the recipe as written.

There are a few swaps you can make in this recipe to express your creative flair or make good use of what you have on hand. If you aren't a fan of sweet potatoes, but are still looking for a fall flavor for these cookies, you can swap the sweet potato puree with pumpkin puree instead. Another easy swap for these cookies is changing out the pecans for a different kind of nut. You can really use any kind of chopped nut you like — walnuts or even almonds would be great in these and still fit a fall theme. And if there's a nut allergy in the house or you just don't like them, you can swap out the nuts with chocolate chips or omit them entirely.

These cookies are also really easy to make vegan, because sweet potatoes already act as an egg substitute. You can remove the egg entirely from the recipe and just add an additional ¼ cup of sweet potato puree. Then, to stay on the vegan theme, you would just have to replace the butter with a dairy-free option, like coconut oil or whatever your preferred vegan butter replacement is.