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Home » Cookies » Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

Published March 17, 2021 Last Modified October 2, 2021 By GreedyEats

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Pistachio Shortbread Cookies made as Pistachio drop Cookies. You need only 7 ingredients and 30 minutes of dough chilling time to pop these shortbread cookies in your mouth! 

Try my Whipped Shortbread Cookies next! Find all my Easy Cookie Recipes here.

Soft, thick, buttery and crumbly Pistachio Shortbread Cookies with lemon glaze in a bowl.

Taste and Texture:

  • Bite sized melt in your mouth Cookies
  • Soft and slightly crumbly
  • Packed with real pistachio flavor
  • Drizzled with Sweet Lemon Glaze

Recipe ingredients:

  1. Butter: I opt for unsalted butter. But if you are using salted pistachios I would suggest to go for unsalted butter. Soften it to room temperature before beginning.
  2. Pistachios: You will need half cup of them, reach out for unsalted raw ones. We will finely chop them to make these Pistachio Cookies. You can do this in a blender. While blending them, there will be some powdered/ground pistachio powder collected at the bottom of blender. You will need to use it in this dough, don't discard it.  
  3. Sugar: We will use confectioners' sugar instead of granulated one. Since confectioners' sugar has some cornstarch already added in it, cookies will bake thicker and softer.
  4. Flour: All purpose flour is the base of this recipe.
  5. Extracts: Both almond extracts and vanilla extracts are needed to pronounce pistachio flavor even more. Just trust me here!

Learn how to make pistachio cookies with 7 ingredients step by step.

How do you make perfect pistachio cookies?

These are the easiest cookies to make. Just one bowl, 10 minutes of prep time and like 30 minutes of chill time, you can literally be eating cookies in under 1 hour. To make them-

  • Beat room temperature butter till smooth. Add confectioners' sugar and beat again till very fluffy.
  • Now add in finely chopped pistachios, extracts and flour. Now add food coloring and beat till the dough comes together. Cover and chill dough for a few minutes. Look at image 3 for visual. That's how chilled cookie dough looks like. Not so sticky and perfectly smooth to form your cookie dough balls.
  • Roll dough into balls and I like to chill the balls again quickly till the oven preheats.
  • Bake for 15 minutes at 350 deg F.

Easy Pistachio Cookies made with real pistachios and no artificial flavorings.

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies topped with lemon glaze kept on a white marble slab.

Lemon Glaze:

Some lemon juice, lemon zest and confectioners' sugar is what you will need to prepare this lemon glaze. I chose to add few drops of lemon food coloring, but you can totally skip it if you prefer it white.

Can you bake with salted pistachios?

There isn't a hard and fast rule that you have to bake with only unsalted pistachios. I prefer unsalted raw ones because then I get to control the amount of salt that goes in the recipe. 

If you choose to bake with salted ones, skip the salt in the recipe. Oh and yes, your desserts will still taste sweet! 🙂

What can I do with lots of pistachios?

Bake cake with it, Pistachio Cupcakes, Pistachio Muffins, Pistachio slice and bake Cookies or these Cookies! 😉

Buttery and thick Pistachio Drop Cookies made with 7 ingredients and topped with lemon glaze.

Should you chill shortbread before baking?

Short answer is yes! Chilling the shortbread dough after rolling them ensures less spread and puffier cookies.

Quick Tip: If you are pressed on time, keep the cookie tray in freezer for 15-20 minutes while oven preheats.

Soft and buttery Pistachio Cookies topped with sweet lemon glaze and finished off with pistachio chunks.

How to store Pistachio Cookies:

  • Baked cookies will stay good at room temp. covered at all times for about a week.
  • Cookie dough can be stored in refrigerator for two days. Allow it to get slightly warm before rolling the cookie dough balls out.
  • You can freeze baked cookies with or without glaze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or on counter top before enjoying.
  • Cookie dough balls can also be frozen for up to 3 months. No need to thaw them, just bake for an additional minute.

More Pistachio Desserts:

Pistachio Bundt Cake Recipe

Soft Pistachio Cupcakes

Healthy Dates Bars Recipe

Cranberry Pistachio Muffins

Rose Pistachio Rice Krispie Rolls 

Thick and soft Pistachio Shortbread Cookies flavored with pistachios and topped with lemon glaze.

If you liked this Pistachio Cookie Recipe give it a star review. Also, tell me in the comments below, how did this turn out for you! And don’t forget to share your creations with me on Instagram at #greedyeatsblog And lets be friends on Pinterest and Facebook as well!

Soft, thick, buttery and crumbly Pistachio Shortbread Cookies with lemon glaze in a bowl.

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

Pistachio Shortbread Cookies made as Pistachio drop Cookies. You need only 7 ingredients and 30 minutes of dough chilling time to pop these shortbread cookies in your mouth! 
5 from 7 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: American
US Customary - Metric
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Chilling Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings 18 Cookies
Calories: 82kcal
Author: Neha

Equipment

  • Hand/stand Mixer

Ingredients

  • ½ Cup Butter (Salted, softened to room temperature)
  • 6 tbsp Confectioners' Sugar
  • ½ Cup Finely Chopped Pistachios
  • ½ tsp Vanilla Extract
  • ½ tsp Almond extract
  • 1 Cup All purpose flour
  • Few drops Gel Food Coloring (optional, but pretty)

Lemon Glaze

  • 1 Cup Confectioners' sugar
  • 1 Tbsp Lemon juice
  • ¼ tsp Lemon Zest
  • A pinch Salt
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Pulse pistachios in a blender/processor until small crumbs form. You need 6 Tbsps of very finely chopped pistachios for the cookie dough batter.
  • Using a handheld/stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for a minute until creamy. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract, then beat on medium-high speed until combined. Next add in flour, 6 tbsps pistachio crumbs (save two tablespoons to decorate on top) and food coloring and beat until combined.
  • Cover the cookie dough and chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes and up to 3 days. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper/ silicone baking mats. Roll the cookie dough into balls, about 1 Tablespoon of dough each and place dough balls on baking sheets. Chill the dough balls again in freezer while your oven preheats.
  • Bake cookies until golden brown on the bottom edges about 14-15 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack. Make sure cookies are cool to touch before dipping in icing.

Lemon Glaze

  • In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients. Stir vigorously with a whisk until all the sugar and lemon juice are combined. Pour on cooled cookies and top with the remaining 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios.

Notes

Storing and Freezing Instructions:
  • Baked cookies will stay good at room temp. covered at all times for about a week.
  • Cookie dough can be stored in refrigerator for two days. Allow it to get slightly warm before rolling the cookie dough balls out.
  • You can freeze baked cookies with or without glaze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or on counter top before enjoying.
  • Cookie dough balls can also be frozen for up to 3 months. No need to thaw them, just bake for an additional minute.
Tips to make perfect Pistachio Cookies:
Pistachios: While blending pistachios, there will be some powdered/ground pistachio powder collected at the bottom of blender. You will need to use it in this dough, don't discard it.  
Sugar: We will use confectioners' sugar instead of granulated one. Since confectioners' sugar has some cornstarch already added in it, cookies will bake thicker and softer.
Butter: Skip salt from the recipe if you are using salted butter or even salted pistachios.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1Cookie | Calories: 82kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Sodium: 45mg | Sugar: 3g
Tried this recipe? Pin it for later!Mention @greedyeats or tag #Greedyeats!
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ntensibe Edgar

    March 22, 2021 at 4:42 am

    Yaaayyyyy! Did I just see pistachios in there? I know these cookies will become my favorite, in no time!

    Reply
  2. Emman Damian

    March 19, 2021 at 1:13 am

    5 stars
    Pistachio Shortbread Cookies sounds so good! I can't wait to make it on weekends. I want some for my niece and nephews!

    Reply
  3. abzstylz

    March 18, 2021 at 2:22 pm

    These look so good!! I love that you don't need many ingredients, and the time is under an hour. Definitely have to try!

    Reply
  4. Benita McLaurin

    March 18, 2021 at 7:08 am

    5 stars
    I love pistachios and cupcakes but I never thought to put the two together. What a brilliant idea. I bet they taste delicious. I will try these out one day for sure.

    Reply
  5. GiGi Eats

    March 18, 2021 at 6:17 am

    Oh my goodness! These look insanely addicting! I would 100% not be able to just eat ONE of them!

    Reply
  6. Ashley t

    March 17, 2021 at 11:25 pm

    5 stars
    These cookies look so good! I love pistachios and these look so easy to make.

    Reply
  7. Heather

    March 17, 2021 at 8:34 pm

    Pistachio is one of my favorite flavors. I can't wait to try these!

    Reply
  8. Christine Weis

    March 17, 2021 at 8:04 pm

    5 stars
    These look amazing! I have a sweet tooth and I love pistachios so this is a must try. Thanks for the recipe and the amazing photos.

    Reply
  9. Amy

    March 17, 2021 at 5:48 pm

    5 stars
    Pistachio and lemon! Yum what a great combination. I'm sure these were a hit for St. Patrick's Day but I'd eat them any time of the year!

    Reply

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About Neha

I'm Neha, baker, recipe developer, photographer and writer at Greedyeats.com I aim to create kitchen tested and quality recipes, accompanied by helpful process clicks and lots of tips & tricks along the way. I truly hope my recipes give you confidence to bake and cook from scratch! Read More…

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