If you are searching for some exotic and untraditional flavors for cookies this season, I’ve got a dreamy recipe for you! Pistachio Rose Water Cookies are so easy and SO good!
I love a good chocolate chip cookie, but sometimes I want to branch out and infuse flavors of international cuisine into baked goods to breathe new life into everyday treats. Pistachios and rose water have been used for centuries in middle eastern cuisine. Rose water is made by steeping rose petals into water to release their oils. It’s often used to flavor tea, ice cream, and various beverages, while pistachios are made into pastes or kept whole to add crunch to baked goods or top onto salads and various entrees. Of course, who can pass up spumoni ice cream or pistachio gelato?! The nutty aroma and flavor of pistachios paired with a hint of floral rose water adds an exotic touch to buttery, tender french-style cookies.
The base of this recipe comes from Jill Van Cleave’s “Big, Soft, Chewy Cookies,” a great cookie recipe book I’ve had for years. There are over 75 unique and delectable cookie recipes from an award winning pastry chef. The original recipe called for toasted pine nuts in the filling, but I wanted the perfect base for pistachio and rose water, and this recipe delivered. The cookie is a buttery, flaky, less sweet dough, and the filling lends a nice crunch and aroma. Try these cookies with a cup of hot tea or coffee and be transported to cookie paradise!
To make the dough, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. “Cut in” the butter into chunks and mix until it’s crumbly (this just means to mix). This technique is called “sanding” and gives the dough a flaky, tender crumb. Cover and chill the dough for at least one hour.
Simply puree the pistachios with brown sugar, then add an egg yolk to bind the paste together. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll into a 12’x10′ rectangle. Spread the pistachio paste onto the dough and roll into a log. A bench scraper or spatula works great to lift the dough from the counter.
Cut the dough on a diagonal line into 3/4-inch slices. Place the cookies cut side down onto a parchment-lined sheet pan.
Bake in a 350 degree oven until the cookies are firm to the touch, about 15 minutes.
Dust with sifted powdered sugar while the cookies are still warm. Serve with a glass of milk or hot tea!
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Bon Appetit Ya’ll,
Leslie O.
Pistachio Rose Water Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp . granulated sugar
- 1 tsp . baking powder
- 1/4 tsp . salt
- 1/2 cup butter cut into pieces, 1 stick
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1/2 cup pistachios
- 1 tsp . rose water
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- powdered sugar for garnish confectioners' sugar
Instructions
- Mix the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Mix in the pieces of butter until the mixture is crumbly. This process is called "sanding".
- Add the whipping cream and mix to form a dough.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to overnight.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix the pistachios and brown sugar in a food processor to finely chop. Add the egg yolk and rose water until it becomes a paste. Set the filling aside.
- On a floured surface, roll out the chilled dough into a 12"x10" rectangle. Spread the filling over the surface of the dough.
- Roll the dough into a log, using a bench scraper or metal spatula to lift the dough from the surface so it doesn't tear.
- Cut on a diagonal line into 3/4-inch slices cut side down and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan, about 1 1/2 inches apart.
- Bake the cookies until they are firm to the touch, about 14-15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Dust with powdered sugar while they are still warm.
- Store in a covered plastic container for 3-5 days.
- Makes about 16 cookies
Yes, yes! I literalljy just posted a recipe for cardamom and pistachio buns. Pistachio is really popular in Indian sweets too. Love the addition of rosewater.
That sounds yummy Abida!
Oh man this looks good. I have no more time before the 25th but I’m trying this the first free evening.
I really loved these cookies. The flavors are really unique and exotic, and of course, buttery…mmm.