Chocolate Refrigerator Cookies

These are the ultimate make-ahead cookie. Shape the dough into logs, roll them in chopped pecans, and stash them in the fridge overnight. When you’re ready, just slice and bake.

The cocoa-rich dough is buttery and tender, sweetened with powdered sugar for a fine, melt-on-your-tongue crumb. The pecan coating gives each round a nutty, toasty edge that crisps up in the oven.

Once cooled, a dab of melted German milk chocolate goes right in the center of each cookie. It’s a small touch that turns a simple icebox cookie into something that looks like it came from a fancy bakery box.

Eight dozen cookies from one batch. That’s holiday baking sorted.

Kitchen Tips

• Chill the dough for at least 2 hours before shaping into logs; it’s too sticky to handle otherwise
• Press the chopped pecans firmly into the log so they stick during slicing
• Use a sharp, thin-bladed knife for clean slices; a dull knife will squash the rounds
• These freeze beautifully as unbaked logs. Slice from frozen and add a minute or two to the bake time