Pistachio Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

These pistachio butter dark chocolate chunk cookies are rich, nutty, and deeply satisfying. Inspired by classic peanut butter cookies, this version has a sophisticated pistachio twist and pockets of dark chocolate in every bite.

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Recipe

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5 from 3 votes

Pistachio Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cookies

Servings: 20 cookies

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

Pistachio butter

• 2 cups roasted unsalted shelled pistachios (224 grams)
• 1 teaspoon oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Cookies

• ½ cup butter, softened at room temperature (113 grams)
• ½ cup brown sugar (100 grams)
• ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
• ¾ cup pistachio butter (171 grams)
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (187 grams)
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup dark chocolate chunks (112 grams)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheet trays with parchment paper.
• Make pistachio butter. Add pistachios to a food processor or blender and process until nuts break down to a fine powder. Continue to process for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add a teaspoon of oil and ¼ teaspoon salt. Continue to process until completely smooth, another 5-10 minutes. Set aside ¾ cup pistachio butter, reserving the remaining for another use.
• Add butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until creamy, about 3-4 minutes. Alternatively, use a hand mixer.
• Add pistachio butter, mixing until well combined. Add egg and vanilla, mixing until well combined.
• Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients to cookie dough, mixing just until combined. Add dark chocolate chunks, folding in the chocolate until well combined.
• Scoop about 2 tablespoons of cookie dough per cookie and space them at least 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Use the bottom of a spatula to flatten the cookies. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheet.

Notes

If using salted pistachios for the pistachio butter, omit the salt.

You can prepare the pistachio butter up to 1 week in advance.

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Make pistachio butter

Let's start by making the key player that makes these cookies so special, the pistachio butter. Making the butter only requires 3 ingredients and the help of a food processor or high-powered blender.

Add 2 cups of roasted, unsalted, shelled pistachios to a food processor or blender and process until the nuts form a fine powder. Keep going for about 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally as the mixture starts to clump.

Then add 1 teaspoon of oil and ¼ teaspoon of salt, and continue processing for another 5-10 minutes until you have a completely smooth, creamy butter. It takes some patience, but you'll get there!

You'll notice that the color of the pistachio butter is darker than that of the ones you might find in stores. That's because I used roasted pistachios. If you want a greener paste, you can lightly roast the pistachios yourself or use blanched nuts. However, you won't notice a difference in flavor or color in the cookies.

This recipe makes about a cup of pistachio butter. You'll only need ¾ cup for the cookies, but the butter keeps for up to a month in the fridge, so save the rest for toast, smoothies, or just eating by the spoonful.

Step 2: Prepare cookie dough

Now it's time to move on to the actual cookies. In the bowl of a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, beat together softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and creamy.

When I was a student at the Culinary Institute of America, my pastry chef would always emphasize how important this step was. Creaming the butter and sugar ensures a delicate and tender cookie. Through my years as a professional chef, I always made sure I took my time with this step; it should take about 3-4 minutes.

Add ¾ cup of pistachio butter and mix until well combined. Then, add an egg and vanilla extract, mixing until everything is smooth and incorporated.

In a separate bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix just until combined.

You don't want to overwork the dough here, or the cookies can end up being tough.

Finally, fold in ½ cup of dark chocolate chunks until evenly distributed throughout the dough. If you want those chocolate pools on top of the cookie, set aside a few pieces to place on top.

Feel free to also use semisweet chocolate chunks instead of dark chocolate for a sweeter cookie.

Step 3: Bake

Scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie and place them at least 2 inches apart on your prepared baking sheets. I like to use a small ice cream scoop to get consistent sizes.

Then, use the bottom of a spatula to gently flatten each one. This helps them spread and bake more evenly. Think of how you need to press down peanut butter cookies with a fork, and the idea is similar.

Bake the pistachio butter dark chocolate chunk cookies for 8-10 minutes, keeping a close eye on them toward the end. The cookies are done when the edges are set and just lightly golden brown.

The centers may still look slightly underdone, and that's perfectly fine. They'll continue to firm up as they cool.

Now take a giant bite out of one of those tempting cookies and tell me that's not delicious. I'll admit I enjoyed one when it was still a little warm; it was absolutely heavenly. The little pools of dark chocolate with the rich pistachio butter are a combination that can't be beat!

For another twist on the classic peanut butter cookie, check out my peanut butter oatmeal spiked raisin cookies!

Make-ahead and storage tips

• Make-ahead: You can make the cookie dough the day before and chill it in the refridgerator until ready to bake.
• Store: Keep leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

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