I love a cookie box. They’re beautiful, fun to put together, so very festive, and a great way to share with others. When putting together cookie boxes (or even cookie platters, for that matter), I think it’s important that the cookies range in texture, flavor, shape, and color.
These pistachio shortbread cookies are the perfect addition to any cookie box you put together. They’re nutty and not too sweet, stacking the cookies makes them stand out from a typical drop cookie or cutout cookie, and they provide a great natural pop of color. The dough itself is easy to make and can be used to make about 20 regular cutout cookies (such as rounds or christmas trees, pictured below) or a handful of Christmas tree stacks.
And if you’re not into making cookie boxes, but still want to gift these cute little stacks, these cookies look absolutely adorable in a mason jar and nestled in granulated sugar. Just be sure to check how big the mouth of the jar is first!
As always, follow along for the step-by-step (which I think is super helpful for these cookies) or skip to the bottom for the recipe.
A note before beginning
This is one of those times where I highly recommend breaking out the kitchen scale and using the gram measurements.
These Christmas tree stacks are made using star-shaped shortbread cutouts. Yield will vary depending on the size of the star cutters used. Smaller sized stars will yield a larger quantity. Larger sized stars will yield less.
The trees will be built from the bottom-up, starting with the largest size cutout (size of your choosing) and ending on top with the smallest size. For a nicely shaped, proportionate tree, I recommend stacking two stars of the same size before moving on to the next size.
If you choose to make regular cutouts, such as 2 to 3-inch rounds or Christmas trees, this dough will yield about 20 cookies.
Begin by making the dough.
Pulse some of the raw, whole pistachios in a food processor until finely ground. The texture should be similar to almond flour, but it's okay if there are a few larger chunks here and there.
Transfer the processed pistachios to a medium bowl and add the all-purpose flour and salt. Whisk these ingredients together to combine and set aside.
Beat together the butter and vanilla until combined and the butter is slightly fluffy.
Add the confectioner’s sugar to the butter/vanilla and beat until well combined and fluffy. Be sure to scrape the bowl as needed.
Add the pistachio/flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined, with some dry bits remaining.
Add the milk and mix on low until no dry bits remain. The dough will be very soft and may be a bit sticky. This is okay.
Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap. Carefully form the dough into a disc and wrap it tightly. Chill the slab of dough in the fridge for at least 1 hour. After an hour, the dough should be well chilled and firm, but not so firm that you can't leave a slight indent when poked.
While the dough chills, pulse the remaining pistachios until finely chopped, not ground.
Once well chilled, divide the dough in half. Generously dust your work surface, rolling pin, and one half of the dough with flour. Return the other half of dough to the fridge.
Roll out the piece of dough to 1/4-inch thick, dusting with more flour as needed.
If the surface of the dough is very floury, dust off the excess flour with a dry pastry brush.
Sprinkle half of the remaining, chopped pistachios over the dough to create a nice, even layer over the surface. Very gently roll over the pistachio-covered dough once more to press the pistachios into the dough. The dough should still be 1/4-inch thick.
This layer of the pistachio will provide texture and make the cookies look extra green, without the addition of any food coloring.
Using cutters of various sizes, punch out as many stars as possible from the sheet of dough. Dust the cutters with flour as needed.
Carefully transfer the cutouts between two lined baking sheets, grouping the smaller sizes on one sheet and the larger sizes on the other sheet. Space the cookies staggered on the sheet. If you can’t fit more than one baking sheet in your freezer, condense all the cookies to one sheet, freeze, and then split the cookies between the two sheets before baking.
Gather any scraps together and set aside.
Repeat the rolling, pressing in of the pistachios, and cutting out with the other half of the dough. Transfer the cutouts to the two baking sheets.
Gather the scraps from both halves of the dough. I like to re-roll the scrap dough and use a tree cutter to stamp out Christmas trees.
Scrap dough can also be used to punch out more stars or any other shape of choice. Note that if you choose to cutout more stars, this scrap dough will not have the pistachio layer on top. You can either pulse/chop and add more pistachios or proceed without. The dough can also be refrigerated or frozen for later use.
Chill the two sheets of cutouts in the freezer for 20 minutes until solid. This helps to maintain the shape once baked.
Once chilled, bake the cookies at 350 degrees f until light golden around the edges, 10-13 minutes depending on the size of the cutout. Let the cookies sit on the baking sheets for 2 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cookies cool, make the icing to build the stacks. Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar with 1/4 teaspoon of milk. Add another 1/4 teaspoon of milk at a time (as needed), whisking after each addition, until the icing is the consistency of glue. The confectioner's sugar amount for the icing in the recipe seems really small, but you won’t need very much to attach the cookies together.
If you accidentally add too much milk and the icing seems too thin, add a little more sugar to thicken it back up.
To assemble one tree, you will need 2 stars of each size, the icing, and one star shaped sprinkle.
Place the largest cookie down in front of you. Spoon a dot of icing in the center of the cookie. Line the points of the next cookie of the same size with the spaces between the points of the first cookie and set down on top of the icing.
Overlapping the cookies like this will help to mimic branches on a tree. Continue to stack the cookies in descending size until all of the cookies for that tree have been stacked.
Dust the stack lightly with powdered sugar to mimic a dusting of snow.
Dip the two bottom points of one star-shaped sprinkle in icing and set on top of the stack of cookies to resemble a star on a Christmas tree.
Build the rest of the stacks. While I’ve described the way I like to build my stacks (with 2 cookies of each size), there are so many different ways you can build these Christmas trees. Use your creativity and run wild.
Stacks of cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week OR nestle a stack inside a jar on top of a bed of granulated sugar to look like a snow globe!
Directions for making the dough in advance can be found below.
Pistachio Shortbread Christmas Trees
Ingredients
For the Shortbread
120 grams (1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup) raw whole pistachios, plus 36 grams (1/4 cup) for sprinkling
120 grams (3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons) all-purpose flour, plus some for dusting
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
160 grams (about 11 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
80 grams (2/3 cup) confectioner’s sugar, sifted if lumpy
1 tablespoon milk (see notes)
For the Icing (to build)
3 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
Milk, as needed (see notes)
For finishing
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting
Star-shaped sprinkles, for decorating
Special Equipment
1 set of star cutters of various sizes
Pastry Brush
A note before beginning
This is one of those times where I highly recommend breaking out the kitchen scale and using the gram measurements.
These Christmas tree stacks are made using star-shaped shortbread cutouts. Yield will vary depending on the size of the star cutters used. Smaller sized stars will yield a larger quantity. Larger sized stars will yield less.
The trees will be built from the bottom-up, starting with the largest size cutout (size of your choosing) and ending on top with the smallest size. For a nicely shaped, proportionate tree, you will need to stack two stars of the same size before moving on to the next size.
If you choose to make regular shortbread cutouts, such as 2 to 3-inch rounds or Christmas trees, this dough will yield about 20 cookies.
Method
Begin by making the dough. Pulse 120 grams (1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup) of the raw whole pistachios in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer the processed pistachios to a medium bowl and add the all-purpose flour and salt. Whisk these ingredients together until combined and set aside.
Beat together the butter and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium speed until combined and the butter is slightly fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the confectioner’s sugar to the butter/vanilla and beat on medium speed until well combined and fluffy, 30 seconds to a minute. Scrape the bowl as needed. Add the pistachio/flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined, with some dry bits remaining. Add the milk and mix on low until no dry bits remain. The dough will be very soft and may be a bit sticky. This is okay.
Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap. Carefully form the dough into a disc and wrap it tightly with the plastic wrap. Chill the slab of dough in the fridge for at least 1 hour, until firm and well chilled.
While the dough chills, pulse the remaining 36 grams (1/4 cup) of pistachios until finely chopped, not ground.
Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Once well chilled, divide the dough in half. Generously dust your work surface, rolling pin, and one half of the dough with flour. Return the other half of dough to the fridge. Roll out the piece of dough to 1/4-inch thick, dusting with more flour as needed. If the surface of the dough is very floury, dust off the excess flour with a dry pastry brush. Sprinkle half of the remaining, chopped pistachios over the dough to create a nice, even layer over the surface. Very gently roll over the pistachio-covered dough once more to press the pistachios into the dough. The dough should still be 1/4-inch thick.
Dust your star cutters of various sizes in flour and punch out as many stars as possible from the sheet of dough, leaving very little scrap. Carefully transfer the cutouts to the lined baking sheets, grouping the smaller sizes on one sheet and the larger sizes on the other sheet. Space the cookies staggered on the sheet, about 1 1/2-inches apart. Gather any scraps together and set aside.
Repeat the rolling, pressing in of the pistachios, and cutting out with the other half of the dough. Transfer the cutouts to the two baking sheets. Gather the scraps from both halves of the dough, wrap in plastic, and chill in the fridge for later use (see notes).
Chill the two sheets of cutouts in the freezer for 20 minutes until solid. This helps to maintain the shape once baked. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees f while the cutouts freeze.
Once chilled, bake the cookies at 350 degrees f on the top and bottom thirds of the oven, rotating front to back and top to bottom halfway through baking, until the cookies are a light golden around the edges, 10-13 minutes depending on the size of the cutout. Let the cookies sit on the baking sheets for 2 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cookies cool, make the icing to build the stacks. Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar with 1/4 teaspoon of milk. Add another 1/4 teaspoon of milk at a time (as needed), whisking after each addition, until the icing is the consistency of glue.
To assemble one cookie stack, you will need 2 stars of each size, the icing, and one star shaped sprinkle.
Place the largest cookie down in front of you. Spoon a dot of icing in the center of the cookie. Line the points of the next cookie of the same size with the spaces between the points of the first cookie and set down on top of the icing. Continue to stack the cookies in descending size until all cookies have been stacked.
Dust the stack lightly with powdered sugar to mimic a dusting of snow. Dip the two bottom points of one star-shaped sprinkle in icing and set on top of the stack of cookies to resemble a star on a Christmas tree. Hold the sprinkle in place for about 30 seconds until set.
Build the rest of the stacks.
Storing
Stacks of cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.
Make ahead:
There are a few options here—
The dough can be made and kept wrapped tightly in the fridge for up to 2 days. Once you’re ready to roll, take the dough out and let it sit at room temp for 5-10 minutes to soften ever so slightly. This will help keep the dough from cracking. Proceed as instructed in the method.
OR
The dough can be made and cutout as instructed. Freeze the cutouts until solid. Once solid, the sheet with the cutouts can be wrapped tightly or the cutouts can be transferred to a freezer-safe container or resealable bag and stored in the freezer. The frozen cutouts can then be kept for up to 3 months. The cutouts can be baked from frozen and will likely need to be baked for an extra minute or so.
OR
The dough can be made and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough in the fridge overnight before using. Proceed as instructed in the method.
Notes
The milk used in the dough and in the icing is simply used to moisten and imparts little to no flavor. Milk of any fat content or even a milk alternative can be used here.
Scraps of dough can be used to punch out more stars, Christmas tree cutouts (that can be decorated as flat cookies, seen above), or any other shape of choice. The dough can also be refrigerated or frozen for later use.
If you choose to cutout more stars, note that this scrap dough will not have the pistachio layer on top. You can either pulse/chop and add more pistachios or proceed without.
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