I call these pistachio drop cookies because they’re little drops of heaven! This is an easy cookie recipe prepared in 1 bowl with just 6 ingredients. Instead of artificial pistachio pudding mix, flavor these pistachio cookies with real pistachios and almond extract. Brown butter icing is optional, but it’s delicious and worth the extra few minutes!
Do you ever catch the baking itch, but don’t know what to make next? Try a pistachio dessert. Seriously! It’s an unexpected and delicious flavor, and the pastel green hue is a lovely bonus.
I’ve shared my favorite Pistachio Cake, Pistachio Cupcakes, Salted Chocolate Pistachio Shortbread, and Pistachio Chocolate Chunk Cookies on my website. I love creating and publishing unique desserts using this underrated nut; pistachios are meant for sugar!
Why You Need to Bake Pistachio Cookies Now
Let us count the ways!
- 1 bowl recipe
- Astoundingly easy to make
- Only 6 ingredients
- Only 30 minutes chill time
- Bite-sized & adorable
- Crumbly & soft
- Made with real pistachios
- Topped with brown butter icing
And bonus: this is an egg-free cookie recipe.
Real Pistachio Flavor
These pistachio cookies are adapted from my beloved snowball cookies, a classic Christmas cookie recipe. I use toasted pecans in my snowballs recipe, but today we’re using pistachios and almond extract. I love using real flavors in pistachio desserts. Did you know that most pistachio cookies rely on artificial pistachio pudding mixes? The pudding mixes are great, but I love baking from scratch when I can. And I know you do too.
These are just like my lemon coconut drop cookies, peppermint snowball cookies & cranberry spice cookies, too!
How to Make Pistachio Cookies
- The first step is to pulse or chop pistachios into very fine crumbs. A small food processor or chopper makes this step easier. Depending on your taste preference, use salted or unsalted pistachios. I love salty sweet flavor combinations, so I use salted.
- The next step is to beat room temperature butter until it’s creamy and smooth.
- Add confectioners’ sugar. Confectioners’ sugar sweetens the cookies and replaces some of the flour. The cookies dry out with too much flour.
- Add vanilla extract and almond extract, then add flour and pistachio crumbs. Most pistachio flavored ice cream gets its flavor from almond extract and it’s absolutely delicious in this easy cookie recipe. If desired, add a drop or 2 of green food coloring.
- Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes, then roll into balls.
- Bake until lightly browned, then top with the optional icing.
(LOL as if brown butter icing is ever optional.)
Brown Butter Icing… you’ll want to eat it with a spoon.
Though these pistachio cookies taste great on their own, they taste even better with brown butter icing. I fell in love with brown butter icing when I topped these brown butter pumpkin oatmeal cookies and this peach Bundt cake. Brown butter icing belongs on everything, including a spoon on a trip to your mouth.
What is brown butter? Browning butter is a method of melting butter that gently cooks its milk solids. Brown butter is nutty, toasty, and caramel flavored. Browning butter takes no more than 6-8 minutes and elevates every single dessert it touches, including icing. Here’s my how to brown butter tutorial. By the way, have you tried my brown butter chocolate chip cookies? You’re in for a treat.
Simply whisk browned butter, confectioners’ sugar, milk, and vanilla extract together until smooth. Dip each cookie into the icing or drizzle on top. Because butter is solid at room temperature, the brown butter icing sets after about 1 hour. This brown butter icing is also delicious on peach Bundt cake, apple blondies, pumpkin oatmeal cookies, and pecan sugar cookies.
These are some of the best cookies I’ve ever made and I know you’ll happily agree. The ingredient list is short, the preparation is simple, and the flavor is unique. Fair warning: these bite-sized soft & crumbly cookies disappear quickly. 🙂
More Quick & Easy Cookie Recipes
- Lace Cookies
- Shortbread
- Mini M&M Cookies
- Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Coconut Macaroons
Pistachio Drop Cookies
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 3 dozen
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Adapted from my snowball cookies, these soft and crumbly pistachio cookies are made from REAL pistachios and topped with brown butter icing. The cookie dough is made from 6 easy ingredients and requires just 1 mixing bowl. There’s only 30 minutes of cookie dough chilling needed, making this a quick cookie recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (130g) salted or unsalted pistachios*
- 1 cup (2 sticks; 230g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (90g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- optional: 1-2 drops green food coloring (I used 1 drop of gel)
Brown Butter Icing (Optional)
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 57g) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk or heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pulse pistachios in a food processor until small crumbs form. See photo above for a visual. You need 3/4 cup of very finely chopped pistachios. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed until completely smooth and creamy. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract, then beat on medium-high speed until combined. Add the flour, 3/4 cup pistachio crumbs, and food coloring (if using) and beat on medium-high speed until combined. The dough may not come together at first, but keep mixing. The cookie dough will be thick.
- Cover the cookie dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and up to 3 days. (If chilling for 2+ hours, let the cookie dough sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling into balls. The cookie dough will be very stiff after being in the refrigerator that long.)
- Time-saving tip: prepare the brown butter icing (below) while cookie dough chills OR while cookies bake.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll the cookie dough into balls, about 1 Tablespoon of dough each, and place dough balls 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. If the cookie dough is too crumbly, keep rolling and working it with your hands. The warmth of your hands will help bring it together.
- Bake the cookies until lightly browned on the bottom edges and just barely browned on top, about 14-15 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack. Make sure cookies are cool to the touch before dipping in icing.
- Brown Butter Icing: Slice the butter into pieces and place in a light-colored skillet. (Light colored helps you determine when the butter begins browning.) Melt the butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once melted, the butter will begin to foam. Keep stirring occasionally. After 5-6 minutes, the butter will begin browning and you’ll notice lightly browned specks begin to form and a nutty aroma. Once browned, remove from heat immediately and allow to cool for 5 minutes. (The butter will eventually solidify, so don’t let it sit too long.) After 5 minutes, whisk in the rest of the icing ingredients until smooth. Add more confectioners’ sugar for a thicker texture, if desired. Likewise, add more milk to thin out if needed.
- Dip cookies in icing or drizzle on top. If coated lightly, the icing will set after 1-2 hours. Cover leftover iced cookies tightly and store at room temperature for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Cookies without icing can sit covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze baked cookies with or without icing for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature. You can also freeze the cookie dough or cookie dough balls for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before baking.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Food Processor or Chopper | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack | Whisk | Green Gel Food Coloring (optional)
- Pistachios: You need 3/4 cup of very finely chopped pistachios in this cookie dough. As instructed in step 1, begin with 1 cup of salted or unsalted pistachios—your choice, I recommend salted—and pulse them in a food processor until small crumbs form. See photo above for a visual. Only use 3/4 cup in the cookie dough because any more will make the cookies too crumbly. If you have extra, use as garnish on the icing or sprinkle over ice cream, cake, salad, and more!
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Use confectioners’ (powdered) sugar. Don’t use granulated sugar. The cookies will over-spread and have a granular texture.
- Light Colored Icing: The darker your brown butter, the darker the icing. I remove the brown butter from the stove right away, so it’s a lighter shade of yellow making the icing a lighter shade as well. I use heavy cream in the icing. It’s thicker than milk and will create a creamier, whiter icing.
Hello! I was wondering if I would be able to use almond essence instead of extract? I’m having trouble finding non-alcoholic almond extract…if I can make this substitution, does the amount required change?
Hi Roohi, we’re unsure how much you would need, though essences can be quite strong. You’ll likely need less. Let us know what you try!
The recipe was amazing and a hit! My cookies flattened though, any recommendations?
Hi Kim, here are all our best tips to prevent cookies from spreading. We’re so glad you enjoyed these!
This was a hit for the whole family. The texture was super crumbly and melt in your mouth delicious! The ONLY thing I would mention was the brown butter icing. As the name suggests it’s primarily composed of butter and can start to thicken rather quickly as it continues to cool after mixing. In between batches I popped it in the microwave for 5-6 seconds and it did the trick without having to thin out with more milk/cream. Totally worth the extra step though, these cookies do not disappoint!
Made these and they were delicious! I’m a fan of pistachios so will definitely revisit this recipe in the future.
I made these cookies and they are wonderful! I wish I could share a picture with you. I have more in the refrigerator chilling right now. I’m planning on trying a cream cheese glaze, garnished with crushed pistachios. This is seriously a great cookie recipe!
Hi Sally excited to try this recipe. I notice there’s no salt. I’m guessing you think if using salted nuts it’s not needed. If you us d unsalted nuts and toasted them yourself for fresher flavor how much salt table salt would you recommend? Thank you
Thank you.
Hi Clo, Salted or unsalted pistachios work just fine here. If using unsalted, you can add an extra pinch of salt if you prefer, but it’s not necessary. Enjoy!
Why no nutritional info for the recipes?
Hi Kate, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Turned out so perfect! Topped with additional pistachios. No green color needed,looks very rustic in its natural state.
Sally isn’t lying when she said these are the BEST pistachio cookies! These really are. I love-love pistachios and wanted to have cookies with ingredients that’d take-over the flavour of pistachios (like almond, coconut, chocochips etc). The first time I made these, I did a mistake of adding liquid food colouring and my entire dough fell apart, I skipped food colouring altogether this time. I halved the recipe cuz I didn’t need 3 batches and added water instead of cream/milk for the icing. Def don’t skip the icing, it imparts a super mild but significant caramel flavour to the cookies. These tasted yummy right away but I’d suggest waiting for the morning lol. Blindly follow the recipe to a dot and these are the best things I’ve put in my mouth!
Love this cookie and it will be added to my favorites for holiday baking! It’s as Sally says, it has that crumble like a Mexican/Russian tea cake cookie. The flavor is nut forward, reminds me of the interior flavor of an almond croissant. I’m a lover of all desserts that showcase nuts and this recipe delivers. It was my first time making a brown butter frosting and it too was stellar. I did use good unsalted butter-Kerry Gold- and salted shelled pistachios from Trader Joe’s and the King Arthur Flour 11.7 Gluten All Purpose Flour that Sally recommends for pie crusts.
I was super excited about these and I have had so much fun this holiday season trying different recipes from Sally’s baking, however, after reviewing the recipe multiple times to see if I made an error, these cookies are extremely crumbly. I measured all my ingredients with a kitchen scale so I’m pretty sure I have it right, I even tried balling the cookie dough better the second batch. It’s like they are missing a binding agent. They taste great and the frosting is delish, but I wouldn’t be able to bring these to a party, they fall apart.
So easy and so delicious! My family loved it!!
Loved the flavor of these and they are simple to make. However after baking them and letting them cool completely they were falling apart/crumbling for me. I followed the recipe to a tea. Any tips to help?
Hi Nat! Could they have been over-baked? Also, how did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
After several experiments with time and temperature, I would think that the cookies are crumbling when not cooked long enough, so really they would be under baked. At least that is what happened for me. Maybe because I didn’t use any food colouring, they looked a little more brown than in the pictures here when baked for 15 minutes at 177C so I tried 12 minutes and that’s when the cookies fell apart as I was icing them. Hope it helps!
Could I use raw pistachios
Hi Mary, We usually use unsalted raw pistachios. Roasted + salted it great too, for extra flavor.
Second year including these in my Christmas cookie tin. So so good and something a little different. I roll the cookies in powdered sugar when warm and roll again when completely cool. One of these days, I will try the icing. So delicious and so beautiful. Thank you, Sally, for another standout recipe.
Hi this looks so good! Do you think I could use pistachio butter for this.
Hi Sue, that would require additional testing to determine the best amount, and what other ingredients would need to change. Let me know if you test anything!
I’m excited to make these for my xmas box this year! I’m shipping, so no icing for me as they need to last a bit longer out of the fridge. Could I roll these in powdered sugar like the peppermint snowballs for a more festive look?
Absolutely!
Excellent delicious and delicate cookies. The brown butter frosting is the perfect icing to top this cookie . Will definitely make them again
Hi, am excited about this recipe, one of my favorites, I love pistachio! I have been making it a few times now; can’t resist, soooooo good. Haven’t had too much luck with brown butter icing so I just use water and icing sugar. Comes out great. Thank you!
I love this recipe, but I saw on tv food channel that toasting pistachios elevates the flavor tremendously. It was during a contest and the judge asked if they had toasted the Pistachios the baker said no and then all the judges said you should always toast pistachios to bring out the flavor.
Have you tried this?
Hi Sarah, you certainly can!We usually use unsalted raw pistachios. Roasted + salted it great too, for extra flavor.
My mom is allergic to almonds. Can I just skip the almond extract without substitution? Should I add extra vanilla? Thank you!
Hi Michelle, absolutely, can swap the almond extract with more vanilla. Hope the cookies are a hit!
Hi! These look incredible, i would really like to include them in the cookie tin box i will be shipping to my grandmother on friday. It will take the box around 6 days to reach her. Do you have any advice as to prolong their longevity as long as possible? Thank you for sharing the recipe 🙂
Hi Sil, cookies without icing can sit covered at room temperature for up to 1 week, but we do recommend that cookies with icing are covered tightly and stored at room temperature for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Here are all of our best tips for how to ship cookies. Hope this helps!