This easy Pistachio Shortbread Cookies recipe yields the most delicious, melt-in-your-mouth cookies! Made with only a handful of ingredients, this recipe takes you step by step on how to bake the best shortbread cookies. These are perfect for tea time, dessert, or just for snacking!
One of my 2025 goals was to get better at baking. Since baking has never come naturally to me, I have a very critical eye when it comes to baking recipes. I can’t tell you how many recipes I’ve tried from other bloggers where the baked good came out a total disaster. Why? Because there was incomplete information in the recipe. (I don’t want to badmouth anyone else, but this has just been my experience!) I think a lot of recipe writers who have been baking for a long time take certain things for granted. For example, creaming together butter and sugar. For someone who doesn’t bake frequently, knowing what benchmarks to look for is a critical piece of information. But so many recipe writers gloss over those types of steps, assuming that the reader has the same level of knowledge as them. Not me!!
I don’t take ANYTHING for granted when it comes to baking, because I have wasted so many ingredients over the years from failed recipes. So I always try to err on the side of providing too much information, rather than too little. Especially because groceries are so expensive these days, I want my readers to have successful baked goods on the first try!
Now onto these Pistachio Shortbread Cookies!
I initially thought I would make these cookies for my Pistachio Dinner Party, but I ended up making a pistachio tiramisu instead. But these cookies are too good not to share! They’re buttery, crumbly, and perfectly melt in your mouth when you eat them. They’re also PERFECT for dunking in a cup of hot coffee! These cookies would be so cute for a tea party as well! I know you’ll love them, enjoy!
Pistachio Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Unsalted Butter softened to room temperature, but not melted
- 32 g Confectioner's Sugar 1/4 cup
- 50 g Granulated Sugar 1/4 cup
- 1/2 Tsp Sea Salt
- 1 Tsp Almond Extract
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 240 g All-Purpose Flour 2 cups
- 1/3 Cup Pistachios chopped
Instructions
- In a large bowl, or in the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter, confectioner's sugar (aka powdered sugar), and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. You want to see that the butter has lightened in color, and that some air has been incorporated into the mixture (= fluffiness).
- Then, add in the almond extract, vanilla extract, and salt and mix again until completely incorporated.
- Add in the flour and mix again until just combined. You don't want to have any streaks of flour, but you also do not want to over-mix the dough. The dough may be crumbly at this step.
- Then, fold in the pistachios with a spatula until just combined.
- Take out a long piece of plastic wrap and set it down on your counter. Place the dough on the plastic wrap in a log shape. Wrap the plastic wrap around the dough, and roll the log of dough onto the counter until it is cylindrical and 2" in diameter. Make sure all of the dough is compacted together.
- Chill the dough in the refrigerator for AT LEAST one hour before baking, or up until overnight. The dough needs time to hydrate. The cookies will not work if they are not rested and chilled first, so don't skip this step!!
- When it's time to bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Using a sharp knife, cut the dough log into cookies about 1/2" thick. Space them out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake in the oven for 12-13 minutes, or until just slightly browned on the edges (but not fully browned). You will need to use 2 separate baking sheets for this. Bake one sheet of cookies at a time, and keep the remaining dough chilled until ready to bake. If you only have one baking sheet, let that COMPLETELY cool before baking the next batch.
- IMPORTANT: leave your cookies on the hot baking sheet after removing them from the oven, for at least 15 minutes. The cookies will continue to cook on the baking sheet.
- After 15 minutes, you can move the cookies onto a wire rack to fully cool.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- If you eat the cookies before they’re fully cooled, they may be very crumbly. This is because the cookies contain a lot of butter, which has a firmer texture when cool!
- Don’t skip the almond extract – that is what actually gives most pistachio products on the market their flavor! It adds so much flavor to the cookie :)
Nutrition
Pistachio Shortbread Cookies FAQs
Is this Pistachio Shortbread Cookies recipe easy?
Yes! I guide you through how to make shortbread cookies in this easy recipe. Hopefully I’ve answered any questions you may have within the recipe itself!
Do I need to rest my cookie dough?
Yes, 100%. If you don’t rest your cookie dough, the cookies will not come out right. This is because the dough needs time to hydrate – meaning it needs to absorb some of the liquid from the butter. I know it’s annoying to have to wait to make cookies, but this is very necessary!!
Why does my cookie dough need to be chilled?
Because these shortbread cookies have such a high ratio of butter, we want to ensure that they don’t spread too quickly in the oven. Because butter is solid when chilled but liquid at high heat, our goal is to have the cookies spread right when we want them to!
Why did my cookies spread?
The cookies may spread if they weren’t rested for long enough, or chilled properly. I’m sorry, I know, baking is very finicky :( But these cookies are worth the effort, I promise!
Why do they call it shortbread?
The name “shortbread” refers to the high ratio of butter in the recipe. The high butter content prevents the formation of long gluten strands, leading to the “short” or crumbly texture that gives shortbread its name.
Where did shortbread originate?
Shortbread originated in Scotland, which is my ancestral homeland on my paternal side! Shortbread biscuits or cookies are very popular in Scotland, especially eaten with tea. (Try these cookies with my favorite Scottish breakfast tea, found here [affiliate link]!)
P.S.
For more plant-forward recipes and New England lifestyle inspiration, be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok! If you make a recipe, please tag me in the photo and use the hashtag #wellandfull so I can see! I love seeing your creations!
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