Pistachio Pudding Cookies are light green gems, roll, and bake for any occasion. Soft and buttery with a touch of salty and sweet, they melt in your mouth, pack a delicious bite and are a perfect easy Easter Brunch Cookie!
A lovely blend of a traditional wedding cookie and a flaky shortbread. The pistachio pudding adds a rich delicate flavor resulting in layers of flavor that aren’t overly sweet.
Use clear vanilla extract, if possible. Pure vanilla extract can give a brown hue to these lovely green cookies.
Using confectioners sugar in this recipe also keeps the color of the cookies a perfect pistachio green.
Don’t skip chilling the dough, it allows the butter to become solid again and keeps the cookies from spreading out and becoming flat.
You can top your cookies with chopped or whole pistachios if you like and a dusting of powdered sugar too.
Be sure that your cookies have cooled completely. Once cooled then you can roll or dust with powdered sugar. If you use confectioners sugar while cookies are still hot the sugar melts and results is a sweaty looking cookie. Which isn’t appetizing in any manner.
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How to Make Pistachio Pudding Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 grams) salted butter, softened
- 1 cup (100 grams) confectioners sugar, divided in half (for dusting after baked)
- 2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract*
- 1 3/4 cups (210 grams) all-purpose unbleached flour
- 1 3.4 oz package pistachio instant pudding mix
- 1 cup Whole or chopped pistachios optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, with a stand or hand mixer cream butter until smooth. Add in 1/2 cup powdered sugar and beat until fluffy. Add in vanilla and mix until combined.
- In another bowl combine flour and dry pudding mix until combined. Gradually add flour mixture into butter mixture until it forms a dough
- Empty dough onto wax paper and form a ball. Wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Remove from the refrigerator and roll 1-inch balls with the chilled dough. Using your thumb or the back of a rounded measuring spoon make an indentation in the center of the cookies.
- Place whole or chopped pistachios in the center of the cookies, pressing down slightly so they take hold in the dough.
- Place on parchment lined baking sheet and bake in the 350° preheated oven for 6 to 9 minutes.
- Remove and let cool at least 20 minutes if dusting with powdered sugar.
Notes
- Prep time is approximate.
- Once completely cooled, cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- To ensure they remain soft add an uncooked flour tortilla on the top and bottom of the cookies.
Be sure to check out our Strawberry Meringue Cookies too, flavor them any way you like to create your own meringue confection…
Orange Cranberry Icebox Cookies are also a family favorite, pretty and so delicious you’ll want to make them for all of your cookie swaps!
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Hey there, fellow food enthusiast! Welcome to Mean Green Chef, where every dish tells a story and every recipe is a labor of love. I’m thrilled to share a bit about myself and the journey that led me here, stirring pots and sprinkling spices for over three decades!
I am going to have to try these. We love pistachios at our house.
Hi, Pauline! And they are so so so easy to whip up, a perfect quick Christmas cookie, thanks! ?️?
These look so delicious. I can’t wait to try them out. I love pistachio flavored desserts.
Pistachio has always been a favorite of mine too, Erika, these are so easy to make too!
These looks amazing! So light and fluffy!
Easy to make too, Kim! Thanks so much for visiting 🙂
I’m thinking St Patrick’s Day, too. Sorry to hear about the need for clear vanilla, as I’m trying making my own and it’s vanilla-brown. But I can see it’s worth it for the delicate color.
Well, you can always sacrifice the color for even better flavor, Beth! I need to look into making my own extract asap, thank you 🙂
Gorgeous cookies! I do love pistachios!!
Thanks so much, Cindy! Pistachios are so good 🙂