My latest food obsession is a flavor I never really frequented as a kid: pistachio. It’s the flavor the kid world loves to ignore, because it doesn’t look nearly as exciting as a giant candy bar or a bag full of sugar. Makes sense. Pistachio is like the quiet kid in school–dull on the surface, but if you take the time to get to know him, he turns out to be this awesome, funny, really unique kid who makes a mean plate of nachos and throws raging keggars when his parents are gone. The sort of kid you would WANT to be friends with in school.
Did I mention the nachos?
The whole idea for this post started because I am cheap. Once upon a time, I indulged in an entire jar of pistachio paste that ran me ten dollars for around two ounces. It tasted heavenly, almost as good as running through a bacon farm with your mouth open, but at that price? Hell no to that being a regular indulgence.
But here lies the problem in that line of thinking: I had already tasted the magic paste of pistachio. I KNEW how good it was. I not only wanted to taste this paste again–I NEEDED it. And yet I am a cheap bastard who refuses to pay more for something when she can make it herself.
So I went to my good The Internets and found several recipes for pistachio paste. The most involved had me pour a hot sugar syrup into ground pistachios, which results in more of a pistachio brittle and a bit of burned Leena. The simplest method was happily the best of the bunch, so you’ll find it included in the recipe below. Little tip–find a bag of already shelled pistachios for this recipe. You’ll like life a whole lot better at the end, trust me.
While searching for pistachio paste recipes, I came across this killer pistachio cookie recipe from the famous food blog Chocolate and Zucchini, and I thought it would be the perfect recipe to try out my new pistachio paste.
And was it ever–the recipe produces a slightly crisp but super soft cookie bursting with pistachio flavor and a hint of crunch on top. Really, just a great all around cookie.
Lesson learned: being a cheap bastard can sometimes yield a new delicious recipe!
~LTG!
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Pistachio Paste
Found at The Accidental Hedonist http://www.accidentalhedonist.com/index.php/2005/03/01/pistachio_paste
1/3 cup shelled, toasted pistachio nuts
1/3 cup powdered sugar
Water
Blend the two ingredients together until you have a fine powder, then add water 1 teaspoon at a time until the mix is the consistency you want it, either thicker similar to marzipan, or thinner and easier to spread.
Will last in the fridge for several weeks.
Pistachio Cookie recipe
Adapted from this Chocolate and Zucchini recipe:
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2004/11/pistachio_cookies.php
Cookie Ingredients
110 g (1/2 C) butter
55 g (1/4 C) pistachio paste (see
230 g (1 C) light brown sugar, preferably unrefined
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
230 g (2 C) all purpose flour (I used ? whole wheat flour)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Makes 50 cookies
Garnish:
? cup shelled, toasted pistachios, roughly chopped
Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C).
Sift together the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, a stand mixer, or if you?re really brave, a spoon and your hand, cream together the butter, sugar and pistachio paste until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla and egg and beat until smooth. If using an electric mixer, at this point, put it down. Take the bowl and fold the flour mixture into the egg/sugar mixture in two installments, working the mixture as little as possible while still fully incorporating the flour mixture into the butter/sugar mixture.
Using a greased cookie sheet, drop the cookie dough in 1 tablespoon lumps. Garnish each cookie with a sprinkling of chopped pistachio, pressing it in slightly to the dough. Bake each sheet tray for 12 minutes or until the edges are just browning, so the cookies stays tender. Remove to a cooling rack. Cookies will harden a bit as they cool.
Enjoy!
