Pistachio Shortbread

We love pistachios so I knew I wanted to give this recipe a try when I found it over at Bon Appetit.  I thought about dipping the finished cookies in melted chocolate, but opted for this variation instead.  The chips are placed right after the cookies come out of the oven - the heat of the warm cookies is enough to melt the chips right in place.

Lets start with some yummy pistachios.

Grind them up until they're sandy.

Don't let them go too long or they'll turn to paste.

Transfer the ground pistachios to a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment (or better, a BeaterBlade), add the flour, salt, almond extract, butter, and water; mix until the dough comes together. Transfer dough onto a piece of wax or parchment paper.

Roll dough into an 8x12-inch rectangle.

I used the flat side of this plastic bowl scraper to help keep the edges straight. A bench scraper would also work.

Slide the paper onto a flat cookie sheet or the back side of a rimmed sheet pan like I did.

Pop the dough into the fridge to chill for about an hour.

After an hour I used a pizza wheel and stainless steel ruler to trim the edges.

Perfect.

Then I cut the dough into 8 strips lengthwise and 4 strips width-wise so I ended up with 32 rectangular cookies that were ready to bake.

Okay, transfer half of the cookies onto a silpat-lined sheet pan and bake in a preheated oven for 10-12 minutes.

Optional: Add a few chocolate chips to each cookie right after they come out of the oven. Enjoy.

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• silpat/sheet pan/cooling rack set https://amzn.to/3ciVCGf

• pastry scraper https://amzn.to/3dxWhnI

• stainless ruler https://amzn.to/3cjDJXQ

• pizza cutter https://amzn.to/3Ulu5K1

• beaterblade https://amzn.to/3KNdIC8

• bowl scraper https://amzn.to/3H7Cg6y

• stainless steel ruler https://amzn.to/3ACZRcY

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Pistachio Shortbread

makes 32 cookies

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 ounces (126g) shelled, unsalted pistachios

• 5 1/4 ounces (150g) granulated sugar

• 6 1/8 ounces (173g) all purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon (6g) fine salt

• 1/2 teaspoon (6g) pure almond extract

• 8 tablespoons (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature

• 2 tablespoons (30g) ice cold water

• optional: 98 chocolate chips (3 per cookies)

Directions

1. Process pistachios and sugar in the bowl of a food processor until finely ground.

2. Transfer mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater (I love my Beater Blade); add flour, salt, almond extract, butter, and water.

3. Mix just until thoroughly combined.

4. Roll dough into an 8x12-inch rectangle on parchment or wax paper.

5. Using a pizza wheel, cut the dough lengthwise into 8 strips, then cut crosswise into 4 strips.

6. Slide parchment or wax paper onto flat surface (like an upside down sheet pan) and chill dough for about an hour.

7. Preheat the oven to 350F.

8. Place the cookies, leaving about an inch of space between each, on 2 silpat-lined sheet pans and bake one pan at a time for 10-12 minutes.

9. Remove from oven and place 3 chocolate chips on each cookie if desired. Cool completely.

adapted from Bon Appetit