Pistachios And Cranberries Make Flavor-Bursting Cookies Perfect For Changing Seasons

Fall is one of the best times of year for baking because so many delicious fruits are in season. While apples and pumpkins often take center stage this time of year, this is also a great time to bake with other in-season favorites like cranberries and pistachios. That is why cranberry pistachio cookies deserve a place on your autumn baking roster right next to apple crumble and pumpkin bread. 

These buttery shortbread cookies studded with bright red cranberries and toasted pistachios could soon become one of your seasonal staples. The tender crumb is soft and pillowy, with the pistachios offering a delicate salty crunch and the cranberries giving a chewy, sweet, and slightly tart flavor. The fall flavors are a perfect partner for your afternoon coffee or a glass of milk before bed.

These simple cranberry pistachio cookies are made with butter, eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla, salt, baking powder, and of course, dried cranberries and toasted pistachios. Toasting your pistachios before baking is an essential step, as they won't get crisp up during the cookie-baking process alone. Toasting nuts helps them to open up and release their oils, which deepens their flavor, too. 

To prepare the cookies, start by mixing the dry ingredients, then cream the butter and sugar. While many recipes call for softened or room-temperature butter, use butter straight from the refrigerator for the best shortbread. Once your dough is prepared, shape it into a loaf and refrigerate for at least twenty minutes or up to five days. 

Once chilled, slice the dough and bake. If you love the flavor of salty shortbread, sprinkle flaky salt like Maldon on top of the cookies before baking. Once they have baked and cooled, you can make these cookies even more extravagant by dipping or drizzling them with white chocolate.   

Top the white chocolate coating with lemon zest or orange zest before it hardens. Or sprinkle the white chocolate with a festive dusting of fine-grained sugar. If you're a chocolate lover, you can turn this into chocolate shortbread by adding cocoa powder to the dough and dark chocolate chunks for double the decadence. 

Try preparing this cranberry pistachio cookie recipe alongside your favorite autumnal treats this season.