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
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 | 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
These are delicious! I had refined coconut oil on hand and decided to try making the cookies vegan by substituting it for butter. I ended up adding about one tablespoon of nondairy milk to get the dough to combine, and the cookies retained a cohesive texture once they were baked. The almond extract really shines in this recipe!
These shortbread-like cookies were easy to make and really yummy! My young kids enjoyed rolling the dough into balls and taste-testing along the way. I think I chopped my pistachios too finely and even though I only baked them for 13 minutes, they did come out kind of dry. They were much improved after dipping them in the brown butter icing though. I think I let the butter brown for slightly too long because the icing is more tan than white but it tastes delicious! Despite my hiccups, my family and neighbors really loved them and I plan on making them again to improve.
These are easy to make but feel fancy! Everyone was wowed and loved them!
These might be my favorite cookies I’ve ever made! The flavor and texture is perfection, and they smell soo good. I’ve never made brown butter before I tried this recipe, and it was surprisingly easy and so worth it. I love the toffee like flavor it added to the icing. I opted to use a little bit of green food coloring in the cookie dough and they came out beautiful!
am i in trouble if a few pulses from my food processor reduced the pistachios into powder?
Love these buttery pistachio cookies! They have great pistachio flavor and are so tender. Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee!
The Pistachio Drop Cookies were a winner! Not only did they melt in my mouth, they were easy to make! I had all of the ingredients on hand too. I used whole milk as I didn’t have heavy cream in the fridge. I’ll try heavy cream next time so the delicious brown butter icing is a little lighter in color. I’m glad I read the recipe twice before making them as I noticed the cookies use only 3/4 cup of pistachio crumbs, not the full cup. All in all, a big hit in our house.
I made these for the monthly challenge, and they were delicious! I can’t wait to make these again for Christmas. The cookies are such a lovely shade of green (I added just a little gel food coloring), and the pistachio flavor is delightful. The cookies themselves have a crumbly texture and multiple family members I shared them with said they reminded them of amaretti cookies. The brown butter frosting smelled fantastic and was delectable. I want to use it for some other cookies as well!
These cookies are delightful. Crumbly, delicate, the brown butter glaze plays very well with the pistachios. Relatively easy to make with a big pay off.
I tried this recipe using gluten-free Cup4Cup flour leaving out 1/4 cup as gf baking tends to be dry and crumbly anyway. The dough did not look moist like in your video. After removing the dough from the refrigerator, I sprinkled cold water over the dough to get it to come together to make balls. Baked 14 minutes and let them rest on the pan before removing to firm up more. The brown butter icing saved them from being tossed. I would not recommend substituting most gf white flours for this recipe challenge.
Wonderfully light and buttery. I was looking for a recipe to compete with a well-known “health food” grocery store’s pistachio cookies and this is the one.
These cookies are amazing! I made these for the monthly challenge and I’ll be adding them to my list of cookies that I make regularly. They come together so easily and are delicious! Sally never disappoints.
This recipe was very easy to make. The icing is a must! The brown butter adds so much to the taste. I would recommend adding something like orange zest to the dough to give it some additional flavor; I thought the addition of the extracts would be enough, but not quite. Maybe I will try to use salted butter instead next time.
These drop cookies with the brown butter icing are soooooo good! Even more impressed with how good they turned out since the recipe doesn’t call for eggs. This recipe is a keeper and one that I will be returning to again and again for a yummy pistachio treat!
1st time making drop cookies! Thanks for the recipe!
These were a massive hit at a work potluck!
These were a big hit! Super easy to make, and not too sweet. I did not use green food coloring, so the cookies almost looked like little mushrooms, but this was not a deterrent for my family 🙂
Wow… made these for the challenge.i left some plain, used powdered sugar on other and the rest with the brown butter icing , they are delicious either way.
My husband said “Do not give any away” …..
These are so easy to make! The most time consuming thing was shelling the pistachios! They are so delicious. I chose to scoop and roll and then put them in the refrigerator. It worked great! Highly recommend this recipe!
Made these cookies and very disappointed. Had no taste even with icing.
One of the few things that I have made from your recipes that was disappointing.
These are delicious, melt-in-your-mouth bites of joy! And I’m so happy to find someone who likes to bake from scratch as well. Pudding mix is fine in a pinch, but you can taste the difference.
A funny side note: I saw a picture of these on Instagram. I went down a rabbit hole to find the recipe, only to end up on my favorite blogger’s post! I laughed, but I should have known. Thank you once again!
These cookies are melt in your mouth delicious! The brown butter icing is seriously heavenly. The batter was super dry at first and not coming together, making me nervous, but I added a bit of water and then they turned out perfectly!
I forgot to add the rating to my review!
I made these to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with my family and everyone loved them! They were quick and easy to put together, and so delicious! I added a bit of green food coloring in the brown butter icing as well, to drive home the green theme. They were perfectly light and buttery, a great dessert for anytime!
Brought a small plate of these to St. Patrick’s Day party. They were a big hit! Will bring a larger plate next year. Delicious.
These turned out wonderfully! I was a little worried the dough would be too crumbly to roll into balls but it wasn’t a problem at all. The icing is so very good, definitely worth the extra step. I am already planning a second batch.
Perfect cookie that’s not too sweet. This recipe should be adjusted tho. It should read 3/4c pistachio in the ingredients. The asterisk doesn’t cut it. Hate to waste an expensive ingredient.
I enjoyed the flavor and they were easy to make! They were a little too crumbly for my liking but that’s just personal preference. Another excellent recipe!
I must admit, when I first saw this recipe on the blog months ago I said to myself…a green cookie? Never. Not gonna make that. I decided the alternate recipe was the better option with how this month is turning out though. These cookies are so delicious! The only thing that disappointed me is that when I did the glaze as written it separated and would stay on the cookies. I tried adding more sugar and it didn’t help. I finally chilled it and then piped it onto the cookies. I also ended up using Hazelnut flavoring instead of almond. So yummy!
This were amazing. Lovely texture and delicious taste. I actually preferred them without the icing. That was a bit too sweet for my taste.
So delicious and so quick and easy to make !