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, White Chocolate Cranberry Pistachio Cookie, Pistachio Chocolate Chunk Cookies, and now Chocolate Swirl Pistachio Ice Cream 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, just like shortbread cookies.
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. 🙂 So when they’re gone, check out 30+ other options in my collection of Quick Dessert Recipes—ready in 1 hour or less!
More Quick & Easy Cookie Recipes
- Lace Cookies
- Shortbread
- Mini M&M Cookies
- Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Coconut Macaroons
- Almond Crescent Cookies
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 (16 Tbsp; 226g) 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; 56g) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk or heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: pinch of salt
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 (20-22g) 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. Taste. Add a pinch of salt, if desired. 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 | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack | Whisk | Green Gel Food Coloring (optional) | Light-Colored Skillet or Stainless Steel Skillet
- 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.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I love these cookies! They are so quick and easy to out together. The initial bite gives you a bit of a crunch, then they just dissolve in your mouth.
Love these cookies 3 separate events I have made them! Just made 400 for an event Thursday night should I store them in containers in the refrigerator or on the counter….. it’s Monday
Thank you
I made these today and they were delicious. Definitely add the brown butter icing, it’s amazing. It reminds me of butterscotch. Definitely watch your butter when browning on the stove. I have a gas stove and it browned very quickly.
My cookies spread instead of staying rounded. What could have been the cause? I did spoon and level the flour.
Hi Paige, check out this post with 10 tips to prevent cookies from spreading. Hope this helps!
Do you think almond or coconut flour could be subbed for the wheat flour?
Hi Cheryl, best to stick with all purpose flour for this recipe.
These are delicious, and I’ll definitely be making them again!
I made these cookies today and they turned out perfect with the softest texture! Thank you for another great recipe:)
I halved the recipe and it came out great! I was worried about how crumbly the dough was but it has a great consistency baked! It’s supposed to be like that.
I made these today and they are simply DELICIOUS! I baked half the batch and froze the other rolled balls for next weekend. (If I can wait!) The brown butter icing is SO good too and adds perfectly to the cookie! These are addictive and so amazing! I will be making these often!
This looks really good but can I halve this recipe?
Hi Sandra, yes, halving this recipe shouldn’t be an issue. Enjoy!
Terrific recipe! I don’t have a food processor so I used a blender to chop the pistachios and that worked great.
Can you make these with vegan butter?
Hi Wendy, we haven’t tested vegan butter ourselves but let us know if you do.
These cookies were delicious but so crumbly. I am making a batch for a party and wondered how to get the texture shown in the pictures so they don’t fall apart for partygoers?
Hi Julie, These are more of a shortbread-style cookie so they should be a bit crumbly, but tender in the centers. If yours were too crumbly, how are you measuring your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to measure your flour to ensure it isn’t over measured. Too much flour could cause the cookies to be extra dry and crumbly. Hope this helps for next time.
Love that it’s simple ingredients and even unleavened for Passover! But the texture was just meh. Kids didn’t love them.
I left these plain as I didn’t have the milk etc. when I get supplies from the store I’m going to try that brown butter icing! I’m salsa going to try using chocolate icing like that Dubai chocolate bar craze!
I made these and they were delicious. Left them plain as I didn’t have the milk etc When I get the ingredients I’m going to cover them in the icing! I’m also going to try chocolate icing just like the Dubai chocolate bars that’s the craze right now!
Have not yet tried but they look delicious!
Could we roll them in powdered sugar rather than use icing? Like with Mexican wedding cookies?
Absolutely! Follow the same rolling instructions as these snowball cookies.
Delicious and easy to make!
These cookies are addictive! I will definitely make them again! Super easy and the brown butter was amazing! I ate it with a spoon just like Sally mentioned in her recipe lol I did have a couple difficulties with the brown butter. It was my first time making it. I must have let it cook too long and my icing colour was dark because of this. It also was getting super thick as I was icing my cookies so I had to thin it out with milk. However this caused me to over mix it and the icing got a bit lumpy and not as smooth looking. They still tasted great and this was more of an appearance issue. Can’t wait to make these again. I know they will not last long in my house.
These were very yummy! They melt in your mouth and have a great flavor.
These cookies were so easy and delicious! I made them twice in one week and got rave reviews both times. The brown butter icing just takes them over the top. Would highly recommend!!
Made these just today (a Sunday afternoon) with my little girl. It was a fun baking project for us. Our cookies spread out a bit – still nice and rounded but not as together as Sallys. Everything turned out perfect- so delicious and light. Rushed some over to our favorite neighbors and they loved them too! Will definitely save and make again. ❤️
These were so delicious! I think I may have underbaked the first round, but still tasted really good.
When I measured my pistachios at 130 grams, after I ground them it was way more than 3/4 of a cup. Did anyone have this problem? I didn’t add all of them.
These cookies are delicious! Making them was a fun way to spend some time on a free afternoon. The directions were easy to follow and they turned out great! The family definitely enjoyed them.
These are delicious! I made them with the butter icing. We could not wait for them to cool before putting icing on them and eating them. We will definitely make them again.
These were easy to make and delicious! The icing is a must!
These are easy and tasty! I opted to “snowball” them with confectioners sugar and they were delicious! Next time will try the frosting.
Mine turned out very crumbly I followed to a t so unsure what happened
Hi Cristina, how are you measuring your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to measure your flour to ensure it isn’t over measured. Too much flour could cause the cookies to be extra dry and crumbly. Hope this helps for next time.
Just put these in the oven and I’m excited to try! The brown butter for the topping is VERY brown I’m unsure how it looks white in the pics?