Go Back
+ servings
Print Pin
5 from 89 votes

Traditional Italian Pistachio Cookies

This recipe for Italian Pistachio Cookies uses only 5 ingredients. The cookies are soft and share the tastes of pistachio and lemon. They are great for a quick cookie recipe any time of the year, and the green color also makes them a great fit for Christmas dessert!
Course Cookies, Dessert
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 21 cookies
Calories 139kcal

Ingredients

  • 200 g 1 ⅔ cup shelled, unroasted, unsalted pistachios (shelled means no shells on the pistachios!)
  • 175 g 1 ¾ cup almond flour
  • 175 g 1 ¾ cup powdered sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • Zest of one lemon
  • Extra powdered sugar for coating

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Use a spice grinder or food processor to grind the pistachios into a fine flour.
  • In a bowl, combine the pistachio flour with the almond flour. Add sugar, eggs, and lemon zest. Mix to combine.
  • Break cookie dough into pieces a little bigger than a walnut shell. Coat hands in powdered sugar and rub on the outside of the cookie dough ball until the dough is covered in powdered sugar.
  • Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, leaving indents with your fingers on the dough.
  • Bake for about 15 minutes. The dough should still be soft, like marzipan. Bake for 18-22 minutes for a crunchier cookie.

Notes

Recipe copyright The Foreign Fork. For educational or personal use only. 
 
  • Pistachios: You can buy these in bulk in the health section of your grocery store. Make sure they are shelled (for ease) and unsalted (for taste). Do not roast your pistachios.
  • Almond Flour: Almond flour can be found in your grocery store, typically with the rest of the organic flours. I use Bob’s Red Mills. Make sure you buy super-fine flour as opposed to coarse.
  • Lemon Zest: The easiest way to zest a lemon (in my opinion) is to run it across the medium setting on a cheese grater. You can also use a lemon zester if you are lucky enough to have one (I am not).
  • When processing the pistachios into flour, make sure to use a high powered grinder. I would recommend a food processor. 
  • You may need to open the food processor, stir the pistachios, and continue processing. Make sure that the flour is very fine and that there are no hard pistachios left in the flour. You can even run the flour through a sieve to ensure you’ve gotten all of the hard pieces out. 
  • The cookies are meant to be softer cookies. However, if you want them to be a bit crunchier, like normal Italian cookies, feel free to bake them for about 20-22 minutes instead of the recommended 15. 
  • If you want a less strong lemon flavor, use about ½ of the lemon zest suggested.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 139kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 102mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 47IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1mg