This Pistachio Sugar Cookies recipe has a perfect pistachio flavor thanks to homemade pistachio paste with a soft pistachio buttercream center that makes these large cookies a great baked snack.
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One of these is perfectly paired with a hot cup of tea or coffee, or as an addition to a lunch box or perfect to share with loved ones at an afternoon tea. Thanks to their unique color and soft texture, these cookies are unlike something you can buy.
Ingredients and substitutions for Pistachio Sugar Cookies
- Butter: Unsalted butter is used for the cookie, but if all you have on hand is salted, that works as a fine substitute, just leave out any salt suggested in the recipe.
- Sugar: Confectioners or icing sugar dissolves into the buttercream and the superfine or caster sugar adds to the sugar portion of our cookies creating a nice balance without making them overly sweet.
- Eggs: The eggs bind and add structure to our cookies resulting in that soft interior that compliments the sugar and butter.
- Pistachios: The absolute star of this dish is the pistachio paste you can make (or buy). Their flavor is unparalled when compared to other nuts so donโt completely recommend substituting, however, you could try hazelnuts or peanuts in equal measure, if you prefer.
- Flour: Plain or all purpose flour is best for a nice light cookie crumb.
- Baking powder: This helps our cookies rise so they are not stodgy.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make Pistachio Sugar Cookies:
Step 1: Whip: The butter and sugars until pale and fluffy.
Step 2: Add: The egg and beat before whipping in the vanilla extract and pistachio paste.
Step 3: Stir: The flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl and toss into the pistachio mixture, whipping until combined.
Step 4: Scoop: A portion of dough and place onto your baking tray with 1 ยฝ inches between each.
Step 5: Bake and indent: Bake for 10 before removing and indenting and baking for a further 5 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool.
Step 6: Whip buttercream: The butter and sugar until pale and fluffy before adding in the pistachio paste and stirring until smooth.
Step 7: Smear: The buttercream over the center of each cookie and sprinkle a little of the pistachio paste on top.
Step 8: Enjoy: Serve up!
FAQโs for the best Pistachio Sugar Cookies
You need raw pistachios to begin with and for this recipe 140 grams, approximately 1 cup and will need to blanche them to peel fully.
This is done by boiling water and placing your pistachios into a rolling boil for 1 minute. Drain and wrap your pistachios in a clean dry tea towel, rubbing to dry and peel most of the skins off. You might have to peel some portions by hand.
Place into a blender and pulse, scrapping down the sides until you have a paste and the oils from your pistachios are visible. The pistachios might look like a paste and fine at the stage before the oils become visible, so keep pulsing and scrapping until you see the oils forming on the edges of your blender or food processor.
Set your pistachio paste aside where it will keep in a covered and dark space for up to 2 weeks. If you are adding this paste to a dish that doesnโt specify sugar, you can sweeten before finishing up by adding 50 grams / ยฝ cup confectionerโs or icing sugar to your blender once the paste is formed.
For further reading re the blanching this information was very helpful and this link was helpful in making the paste.
Yes!! This holds for 2 weeks covered and kept in a cool dark place!
More pistachio recipes youโll enjoy
Pistachio Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Pistachio Sugar Cookies
- 150 grams / 5.3 ounces butter softened
- 65 grams / โ cup confectionerโs/icing sugar
- 50 grams / ยผ cup superfine/caster sugar
- 55 grams / 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 50 grams / 3 tablespoons pistachio paste
- 282 grams / 1 ยพ cups plain flour
- 2 grams / ยฝ teaspoon baking powder
- ยฝ teaspoon sea salt
Pistachio Buttercream
- 100 grams / 3.5 ounces butter softened
- 100 grams / ยพ cup + 2 tablespoons confectioner/icing sugar sifted
- 40 grams / 2 ยผ tablespoons pistachio paste
Instructions
Pistachio cookies
- Preheat your oven to 180C/350F and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Place the butter and sugars into a bowl and beat until pale and fluffy, approximately 4 minutes.
- Add in the egg and beat until well combined and fluffy.
- Pour in the vanilla extract and beat until just combined.
- Add in your pistachio paste and beat until combined and smooth.
- In a separate bowl, place the flour, baking powder and salt and stir.
- Toss into your pistachio butter mixture and beat until just combined and smooth.
- Scoop up a portion of dough and place onto your baking tray with 1 ยฝ inches between each cookie.
- Bake for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and press into the center with a flat bottomed glass to create an indent.
- Return to the oven for 5 minutes or until lightly matt looking.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the tray before placing on a cooling rack.
Pistachio buttercream
- Place the butter and sugar into a bowl and beat on medium with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, approximately 4 minutes.
- Fold in the pistachio paste until smooth.
- Take a heaped tablespoonful of the buttercream and smear over the center of the cookie.
- Sprinkle over a little of the pistachio paste.
- Serve up and dig in!
Notes
- Pistachios: The absolute star of this dish is the pistachio paste you can make (or buy). Their flavor is unparalled when compared to other nuts so donโt completely recommend substituting, however, you could try hazelnuts or peanuts in equal measure, if you prefer.
- Food processor or Blender / immersion blender: To make the pistachio paste you need a blender or immersion blender and will need to pulse the pistachios frequently to get the paste going, but this is so worth it! That is, if you canโt buy it.
- Ice Cream Scoop: The scoop used here creates large cookies with a diameter of 6 centimeters / 2.36 inches.
- Medium cookies: If you want to make medium cookies, use a scoop of 5 centimeters 1.97 inches diameter. And the second bake should only be for 4 minutes. This results in a batch of 16 cookies.
Nutrition
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