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Pistachio Wedding Cookies Recipe

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★★★★★

4.5 from 129 reviews

These Pistachio Wedding Cookies are a delightful and buttery treat, packed with finely chopped roasted pistachios and coated in a generous dusting of powdered sugar. Their tender, crumbly texture and nutty flavor make them perfect for special occasions or anytime you crave a decadent, nutty cookie. Easy to prepare and bake, they come out light golden with a melt-in-your-mouth quality.

Ingredients

Scale

Main Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups roasted and salted shelled pistachios
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
  • ½ cup powdered sugar, plus extra for finishing
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

Instructions

  1. Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheets: Preheat your oven to 400°F (205°C). Line two cookie sheets with Silpat liners or leave ungreased. You can bake on one cookie sheet but allow it to cool before using it for the second batch.
  2. Prepare Cooling Container: Use an additional cookie sheet or a large flat container for cooling the cookies. Sift a generous layer of powdered sugar over its bottom. Have a separate bowl with more powdered sugar ready for rolling the cookies.
  3. Remove Excess Salt from Pistachios: Dampen several layers of paper towels and spread the roasted and salted pistachios on top. Lightly rub to remove excess salt from their surface.
  4. Chop Pistachios Finely: Using a food processor, pulse the pistachios until very finely chopped, being careful not to over-process into nut butter. Alternatively, chop by hand finely.
  5. Cream Butter and Sugar: In a stand mixer or by hand, cream the softened butter with ½ cup powdered sugar until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
  6. Add Vanilla and Salt: Beat in the vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract along with the salt, incorporating well.
  7. Mix in Flour and Pistachios: At low speed or by hand, gradually stir in the all-purpose flour until the dough looks crumbly and combined. Then fold in the finely chopped pistachios and continue blending until the dough just begins to come together.
  8. Form Cookies: Roll the dough into 1-inch balls using a small cookie scoop or spoon. Place the balls onto prepared cookie sheets about 1 inch apart; these cookies do not spread much during baking.
  9. Bake Cookies: Place the first sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 12-15 minutes. The tops will not brown but the bottoms will turn lightly golden. Avoid overbaking as the cookies can become dry; they will continue to cook slightly as they cool. Roll and arrange the second batch while the first bakes.
  10. Roll in Powdered Sugar: Remove the baked cookies, then immediately roll a few at a time in the bowl of powdered sugar. Transfer them to the powdered sugar-dusted cooling pan and space them slightly apart. Let them cool completely.
  11. Repeat for Second Batch: Bake the second batch of cookies, then repeat the powdered sugar rolling and cooling process as with the first batch.
  12. Final Powdered Sugar Coating: Once all cookies are completely cooled, roll them a second time in powdered sugar for a beautiful, snowy coating.

Notes

  • Be careful not to over-process pistachios in the food processor to avoid turning them into nut butter.
  • If you only have one baking sheet, allow it to cool completely between batches to prevent the dough from spreading too much.
  • The cookies bake at a high temperature for a short time, so keep an eye on them to prevent dryness.
  • Using vanilla bean paste gives a more intense vanilla flavor but vanilla extract works well too.
  • Rolling the cookies twice in powdered sugar ensures they have a lovely sweet coating typical of wedding cookies.
  • These cookies keep well in an airtight container for up to a week.

Keywords: pistachio cookies, wedding cookies, nut cookies, powdered sugar cookies, holiday cookies, buttery cookies

Find it online: https://thefoodrecipe.com/pistachio-wedding-cookies-recipe/