Salty pistachios with sweet white chocolate chips and a touch of orange zest are a divine flavour combination.

These soft and chewy cookies are easy to make and perfect for any Christmas cookie box!

I love to make a variety of cookies during the holiday season including these Shortbread Cookies with Lemon Icing! But, these Orange White Chocolate Pistachio Cookies are packed with holiday flavours you’ll love too.

They’re the perfect accompaniment to a cup of coffee or hot cocoa on a Wintery afternoon. Or, make a batch as a light dessert for a holiday gathering.  If you’re a fan of white chocolate, these are the cookies for you!

Why you’ll love these orange pistachio white chocolate chip cookies

• Easy: You don’t need an electric mixer / stand mixer to make these – just a couple of mixing bowls to make these soft cookies!
• Flavourful: You get white chocolate, pistachios and a hint of orange in every bite.
• Ingredients: All of the main cookie ingredients are easy to find in the baking aisle at the grocery store.

Ingredients

Flour: all purpose flour is a must along with baking soda and baking powder

Orange: orange zest brings a nice touch of citrus flavour to these pistachio cookies

Pistachios: roasted, salted pistachios add the best pistachio flavour

White chocolate: I like to use white chocolate chips in this holiday cookie recipe but you can swap for chopped white chocolate or white baking chips

Sugar: you will need a combination of white sugar and brown sugar to make these cookies 

Butter: use unsalted butter for the base of this cookie recipe

Egg: one egg is needed to bring the cookie batter together

How to make these holiday cookies

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F & line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Mix dry ingredients together (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) & set aside.
3. In another bowl, add orange zest, sugar and brown sugar and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugars until moist and fragrant. Add the melted butter to the sugar mixture and mix until well combined. 
4. Next, add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until smooth.
5. Pour the flour mixture into the wet mixture and mix until combined. Stir in the white chocolate chips and chopped pistachios until just incorporated.
6. Scoop 2 tablespoonfuls of cookie batter per cookie into balls, placing them about 3 inches apart on a baking sheet (make sure to leave space between cookies as they will spread). 
7. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges, the center of the cookie will still be slightly soft. Remove from the oven & let sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to the cooling rack.

Tips & tricks

• While I like to use white chocolate chips for ease in this recipe, you could chop up a white chocolate bar into white chocolate chunks instead. I like to use Ghirardelli or Lindt white chocolate bars.
• Salted pistachios give these cookies a lot of flavour compared to unsalted pistachios.
• Get perfectly round cookies by using this baking tip: Place a large round cookie cutter around each freshly baked cookie while still on the baking sheet. Gently swirl the cookie cutter around the edge of the cookie to get a perfectly round shape.

Common questions

How to store these pistachio cookies

Once cooled, you can store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Alternatively, you can freeze the cookies in a ziptop bag or in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Make sure to separate the cookies between parchment paper to ensure easier removal once frozen. Defrost cookies at room temperature for 3-4 hours before enjoying.

More holiday dessert recipes to make from the blog

• Chewy Chocolate Pretzel Bars
• Easy Cranberry Oat Crumble Bars (for the holidays)
• Lemon Squares

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Orange White Chocolate Pistachio Holiday Cookies

These Orange White Chocolate Pistachio Cookies are made for the holidays! White chocolate, pistachios and a hint of orange in every bite.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword christmas cookie, pistachio

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 16 -18 cookies

Author Jess

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (180 g) all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fresh orange zest
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• ¾ cup (135g) white baking chips or white chocolate chips
• ¾ cup roasted salted pistachio nuts, roughly chopped (112g – measured full then chopped)

Instructions

• Pre-heat oven to 350F & line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Mix dry ingredients together (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) & set aside.
• In another bowl, add orange zest, sugar and brown sugar and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugars until moist and fragrant. Add the melted butter to the sugar mixture and mix until well combined.
• Next, add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until smooth.
• Pour the flour mixture into the wet mixture and mix until combined. Stir in the white chocolate chips and chopped pistachios until just incorporated.
• Scoop 2 tablespoonfuls of cookie batter per cookie into balls, placing them about 3 inches apart on a baking sheet (make sure to leave space between cookies as they will spread).
• Bake for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges, the center of the cookie will still be slightly soft. Remove from the oven & let sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to the cooling rack.

Notes

• While I like to use white chocolate chips for ease in this recipe, you could chop up a white chocolate bar into white chocolate chunks instead. I like to use Ghirardelli or Lindt white chocolate bars.
• If white chocolate isn’t your favourite, feel free to swap for dark chocolate chips (or a chopped dark chocolate bar instead).
• Once cooled, you can store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Alternatively, you can freeze the cookies in a ziptop bag or in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Make sure to separate the cookies between parchment paper to ensure easier removal once frozen. Defrost cookies at room temperature for 3-4 hours before enjoying.

Photography by: Kaeleigh Pugliese

The post Orange White Chocolate Pistachio Holiday Cookies appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.

White chocolate and pistachios pair so well in the fudgy, buttery blondie recipe.

Drizzle the tops of the blondies with melted chocolate and sprinkle on extra pistachios for the most delicious dessert.

I love blondies as an easy dessert like my apple pie blondies and blueberry lemon blondies as they’re so simple to make! Their soft and chewy texture is so hard to resist and that’s why I love these soft and chewy white chocolate pistachio blondies.

why you’ll love these simple white chocolate pistachios blondies

• You get delicious pistachio flavour in every bite so pistachio lovers, this ones for you!
• These blondies are a wonderful dessert anytime of year.
• The soft texture of these blondies is irresistible! They’re like a soft delicious cookie.

ingredients needed to make these delicious blondies

Butter: unsalted butter is key to the base of this recipe

Sugar: light brown sugar and granulated white sugar is best combination of sugars for these white chocolate pistachio blondies; if all you have is dark brown sugar, that works as a substitute for the light brown sugar if needed

Egg: an egg is needed to bind the whole blondie batter together; a room temperature egg is best

Vanilla extract: vanilla extract brings the flavours together

Almond extract: a touch of almond extract enhances the pistachio flavor

Flour: all purpose flour is the key ingredient to the batter

White chocolate: I love to use white chocolate chips in this recipe but you could substitute with chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chunks

Pistachios: salted or unsalted pistachios can be used in these white chocolate blondies

how to make these white chocolate pistachio blondies

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350F and line an 8×8 inch square baking pan with a sheet of parchment paper.

Step 2: In a medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, white and brown sugar until combined. Add the egg, vanilla extract and almond extract and mix well.

Step 3: Using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt) into wet ingredients, stirring until everything comes together in a smooth batter and no clumps of flour remain (it will be quite thick like cookie dough). Add in the white chocolate chips and roughly chopped pistachios and fold in until well combined.

Step 4: Transfer the blondie batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top so the batter reaches the edges of the pan.

Step 5: Bake for 24-26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the blondies cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Step 6: Once cooled, make the white chocolate drizzle by adding the white chocolate to a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring after each 30 seconds, until melted, this can take 1 minute total or so.

Step 7: Drizzle the blondies with melted white chocolate chips, add extra chopped pistachios to the top of the blondies and cut into 9 or 12 squares and enjoy!

​Expert tips

• Elevate these white chocolate pistachio blondies even further by adding a sprinkle of flaky salt to each blondie.
• Cooking times can always vary depending on your oven. So, I suggest checking for doneness at 24 minutes as they may take less or more time than indicated in the recipe.
• Make these into Christmas blondies by substituting half of the white chocolate for dried cranberries.

Common questions

Can I use dark chocolate instead?
If white chocolate isn’t your favourite, substitute with dark chocolate chips or chunks instead.

Can I use a different sized pan?
I don’t recommend using a 9×9 pan as the blondies will be far to thin.

How to store

Once the white chocolate pistachio blondies are cooled and cut into squares, store in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days or up to 1 month in the freezer.

More delicious blondies recipes to love from the blog

Lemon Blueberry Blondies

The Best Cinnamon Spiced Apple Pie Blondies Recipe

Snickerdoodle Blondies

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Simple & Delicious White Chocolate Pistachio Blondies

These White Chocolate Pistachio Blondies are incredibly simple to make! Drizzled with white chocolate, they're delicious anytime of year.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword blondies, pistachio, white chocolate

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 9 - 12 squares

Author Jess

Ingredients

For the white chocolate pistachio blondies

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup roughly chopped shelled lightly salted (or salted) pistachios, plus more for garnish

For the white chocolate drizzle

• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Instructions

• Step 1: Preheat oven to 350F and line an 8x8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper. (If using a 9x9 pan see notes below on baking time).
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter, white and brown sugar until combined. Add the egg, vanilla extract and almond extract and mix well.
• Using a spoon or spatula, mix flour, baking powder and salt into wet ingredients, stirring until everything comes together and no clumps of flour remain (it will be quite thick like cookie dough). Add in the white chocolate chips and roughly chopped pistachios and fold in until well combined.
• Transfer the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top so the batter reaches the edges of the pan.
• Bake for 24-26 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. You'll see the sides of the blondies get a little golden brown and pull away from the sides of the pan. Don't over bake. Let the blondies cool completely in the pan.
• Once cooled, make the white chocolate drizzle by adding the white chocolate to a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring after each 30 seconds, until melted, this can take 1 minute total or so.
• Drizzle the blondies with melted white chocolate chips, top with extra roughly chopped pistachios and cut into 9 or 12 squares and enjoy!

Notes

• Elevate these white chocolate pistachio blondies even further by adding a sprinkle of flaky salt to each blondie.
• Cooking times can always vary depending on your oven. So, I suggest checking for doneness at 24 minutes as they may take less or more time than indicated in the recipe.
• Make these into Christmas blondies by substituting half of the white chocolate for dried cranberries.

The post Simple & Delicious White Chocolate Pistachio Blondies appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.

Case in point, this super SIMPLE bark which of course includes two of my favourite things – Pistachios & Chocolate!

It’s a bit of a salty-sweet combination that I just cannot resist and would make an easy and delightful gift this holiday season. But, maybe keep a bit of it for yourself too.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Equipment:  baking sheet & medium pot/pan

Ingredients:
2 tsp coconut oil
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup salted pistachios, shelled & roughly chopped

Instructions:

First, lay down a piece of parchment paper to cover your baking sheet.

Next, shell pistachios (if needed), then roughly chop.

Put the coconut oil at the bottom of the pot, then add the chocolate chips. Heat on low heat, stirring constantly as the mixture melts.  Continue to stir until fully melted and then take off the heat.

Pour onto the parchment paper, spread out to about a quarter-inch and drop the pistachios on top.

Place in the fridge for one-hour.  Remove and break up to desired size.  For longevity, store in the freezer & take out for about a half-hour to hour before serving.

Want to use this as a gift? Line whichever container you choose with parchment paper, fill with bark et voila!

Cook’s Note:  You can truly use any ingredients you desire to mix in & make this bark your own! Get creative! Some of my favourite combinations:
– Cherry & Pistachio
– Mini-Marshmallow’s & Graham Crackers
– Toffee & Salt
– Coconut

Until the next cooking adventure,
Jess

The post Pistachio-Chocolate Bark appeared first on Cooking in my Genes.