Gluten Free Pistachio Cookies Recipe

There are so many reasons I love this recipe it is hard to know where to start.  So let’s start with the star of this show, pistachios.

Pistachios are positively addictive and yet it is an addiction one can indulge in guilt free. They are high in protein, have no trans fats and may actually help you reduce cholesterol. They also happen to contain they highest number of nuts per serving than any other nut, great news if you are on a diet.

The second reason I am so enamored with these cookies is they are simple to make and the food processor does all the work.

This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free and grain-free. These are cookie you can feel pretty darn good about eating but of course no matter how good for you something is, if it doesn’t taste great, who cares?

Which brings me to the final reason I love these cookies, they taste delicious; intense pistachio flavor, not overly sweet, crispy on the outside with a hint of chewiness inside. In fact I loved the flavor so much I decided to make then two ways, plain and with a layer of chocolate sandwiched between.

For the Pistachio Chocolate Sandwich Cookies I decided to add a pop of red by topping with a bit of dried cranberry. I know we are currently in the dog days of summer but I am already thinking these are going to make fantastic Christmas cookies!

Gluten Free Pistachio Cookies Recipe

Ingredients

Pistachio Cookies

2¼ cups roasted, salted pistachios – use divide
1 cup granulated sugar plus more for sprinkling
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 drops green gluten free food coloring – optional

Filling

½ cup dairy free dark chocolate chips
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Pistachio Cookies

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with Silpat mats or parchment paper.

Roughly chop ¼ cup of the pistachios and reserve for garnish. Place the remaining 2 cups pistachios in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process the pistachios until they turn into a paste, this will take 2 or 3 minutes, scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times during the processing.

Add 1 cup sugar to the pistachio paste and process in long pulses until combined. Add the egg whites, vanilla and food coloring if using and pulse to combine. You should have a thick batter. Using a small ice cream scoop or two teaspoons, drop the cookies onto the prepared pan, spacing two inches apart. Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with a little granulated sugar and the reserved chopped pistachios. Gently press the pistachios into the cookies.

Bake for 12 – 14 minutes for chewy cookies, 15 – 17 minutes for crispy cookies. The cookies should be lightly browned around the edges. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Filling

Place the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1 – 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until just melted. Keep the chocolate in the warm bowl and stir in the vanilla. It may start to seize up a little, that’s ok, just keep stirring until smooth again and thickened. Let cool. The chocolate will thicken more as it cools.

Spread some of the cooled chocolate on the flat side of the plain cookies. Top with a cookie that has the chopped pistachios and cranberries or cherries, flat side down.

Gluten-free Pistachio Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

Same recipe as above
6 dried cranberries or cherries, halved

Prepared the cookie batter as in the recipe above. Top half of the cookies with granulated sugar, chopped pistachios and a bit of dried cranberry or cherry. Leave the other half of the cookies plain. Bake and cool as above.

Servings

A gluten free recipe that makes 12

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