There is something special about pistachio nuts, exotic with their lovely jewel green and yellow centres. They are the seeds from the Pistachio tree, so botanically they are seeds not nuts.
Loaded with fibre like nuts and a great source of protein, This cookies are
- Chewy
- Delicious
- Nutty
- Crispy
- Chocolatey
- Super easy
- Packed with goodness
Super easy and quick to make. These cookies and both vegan and gluten free, which is always a plus. Adding a good dark chocolate to this recipe will give you the added health benefits it contains. Dark chocolate contains a variety of good minerals and fibre
The cookie dough does not need time to chill in the fridge before baking because you do not use melted butter. You can however you can make up the dough, wrap it in cling film and store in the fridge for a few days.
The cookies are very moreish with pockets of gooey chocolate and peppered with pistachios.
Additional flavours
If you want change the flavour a little, you could add any of the following.
- Zest of a large orange
- Sea salt sprinkle a small amount on the top of each cookie before you bake them. Be very careful not to overdo it. I find it easier to add some salt to the mixture.
- Cardamom Add 1 tsp of ground cardamom to the mixture to replace the vanilla paste.
- Ground ginger Add 1 tsp of ground ginger again to replace the vanilla.
The Sugars
Make sure you make this recipe with a mix of soft brown and granulated sugar. The soft brown sugar will give you a delightful chewy centre, and the granulated sugar gives you the gorgeous crispy edges.
Type of chocolate
I like to make this recipe with dark chocolate (75%). I have made it with vegan white chocolate, which works well. If you are using this instead of the dark, try adding the zest of one lemon to give for an extra zing.
Pistachio and chocolate cookies
Vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, egg-free and dairy free
- Preparation Time 10 Minutes
- Cooking Time 12-15 Minutes
- Makes 22 Cookies
Ingredients
- 120 g of dairy-free butter
- 120 g of soft brown sugar
- 50 g of caster sugar
- 275 g of gluten-free plain flour
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp of baking powder
- 250 g of dark dairy-free chocolate chopped
- 70 ml of dairy-free milk of your choice
- 65 g of finely chopped pistachios
- 2 tsp of vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C or gas mark 4 and line a large baking sheet with baking paper.
- Using an electric mixer, cream the sugars and butter to the bowl with a pinch of salt and . whisk for a few minutes for a few minutes until creamy.
- Sieve the flour, salt, xanthan gum, bicarb and baking powder into another bowl and stir together.
- Add this to the creamed mixture with the milk and the vanilla paste and fold together thoroughly. Next, fold in the chocolate and pistachios. It should now form a soft dough.
- Take large walnut-size pieces of the cookie dough and form them into a ball, place on the baking sheet and flatten slightly. Repeat this process with the rest. Make sure you leave enough room between the cookies as they do spread.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Leave them on the baking tray for a few minutes and then transfer to cooling racks.
- Once they are cool, store in an airtight container. The cookies will stay fresh will be fine for up to 5 days. You could also freeze them in airtight freezer bags for up to 3 months.
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If you like this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Twitter as @veganalchemist1 or my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/thegfveganalchemist I love seeing your versions of my recipes and love hearing your comments
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