By Louisa Shafia
4.5
(33)
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Anna Hampton
- Save Story
Active Time
35 minutes
Total Time
40 minutes (plus chilling time)
Both cardamom and pistachios are essential ingredients in Persian dessert making. This dough is delicate because it doesn’t contain any gluten, so be sure it’s fully chilled and firm before rolling into logs and slicing into cookies. Looking for more baking ideas? Check out our full collection of gluten-free cookies.
Ingredients
Makes about 30
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup virgin coconut oil, softened at room temperature
1 large egg
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest (from about 2 oranges)
2 cups almond flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup roasted, salted pistachios, finely chopped
3 ounces dark chocolate (for drizzling; optional)
Preparation
Step 1
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream sugar and oil in a large bowl until mixture resembles texture of wet sand, about 3 minutes. Add egg and orange zest and beat until just combined.
Step 2
Whisk almond flour, potato starch, cardamom, and salt in a medium bowl. Fold dry ingredients into oil mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 1 hour.
Step 3
Spread pistachios in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Divide dough into 2 balls. Roll each ball into 1 1/2" wide logs, then roll logs in pistachios to coat; reserve remaining pistachios for decorating, if desired. Wrap logs in plastic wrap and chill at least 1 1/2 hours.
Step 4
Arrange racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Using a sharp knife, slice dough into 1/4"-thick rounds and arrange on baking sheets (about 12 per sheet). Sprinkle with reserved pistachios, pressing lightly to adhere (alternatively, drizzle with melted chocolate after cookies are baked, see below).
Step 5
Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until undersides are golden, 8–12 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks. Let 1 sheet cool completely before lining again with parchment and baking third batch.
Step 6
If you didn't sprinkle the cookies with pistachios, melt chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl set over a medium pot of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally, or in short bursts in the microwave, stirring in between bursts, until chocolate is smooth. Drizzle cooled cookies with chocolate and let set before serving.
Do Ahead
Step 7
Dough can be formed into logs 3 days ahead; keep chilled. Cookies can be baked 3 days ahead. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Sign In or Subscribe
to leave a Rating or Review
How would you rate Flourless Almond Cookies With Cardamom, Orange Zest, and Pistachios?
Leave a Review
Reviews (33)
Back to TopTriangleMade this as written, except I used cornstarch instead of potato starch. Everyone enjoyed them and they are impressive with the chocolate drizzle and chopped pistachios on top.I wouldn't change a thing.
MaddLibb
12/11/2022
I loved this cookie! Very addictive. I, too, used cornstarch instead of potato starch due to sensitivity. I also cut back the sugar to 3/4 cup instead of 1 cup. Next time I will try 2/3 cup as it still seemed a little too sweet for me. The orange flavor really showed through. I sliced the cookies and pressed the chopped pistachios on top. I did not add chocolate, but might do that next time!
trvl chk
Kissimmee, FL
12/23/2021
Can you use monk fruit instead of sugar? I would not make anything with so much sugar.The spices look great.
Tamarque
New Paltz, NY
12/12/2021
Was looking for something to bring for a Seder and this looked attractive. I like it a lot but for my taste would add more cardamom (maybe fresh ground) and more pistachios as well as a pinch more salt. I would recommend making the dough the day before as the total chilling time of 2 and 1/2 hours is a lot. I am going to try a few drops of rosewater next time and will post how it comes out. All told a very good recipe!
carol.wellins359
3/28/2021
Sorry--I usually make recipes as written first time and for reviews, but I did use butter, almonds and corn starch in place of coconut oil, pistachios, and potato starch. I didn't bother with the chocolate. Even with changes, these were addictive.
ksadamson
See AlsoCottage Cheese PancakesIdaho
3/21/2021
So good! Made these with almonds and corn starch instead of pistachios and potato starch as it is what I had. Didn't use the chocolate, but didn't need it.
ksadamson
idaho
3/21/2021
I followed the recipe exactly. Everything would have been perfect except that I have an unreliable oven. Even baking for the minimum amount of time the under sides burned. But here's a true endorsem*nt of the recipe: even slightly burned the cookies were delicious. The flavors were so unusual. I'm looking forward to making them again in a proper oven. One note - Total time is listed as "40 minutes plus chilling time". The chilling time is 1.5 hours! My fault for not reading more closely but still that's a huge chunk of time that should have been more clear.
Anonymous
Austin, TX
11/26/2019
Lovely cookies. I used 1 Tbsp chopped candied orange peel (the prep on shelling and chopping pistachios, then getting the seed out of my cardamom pods made me opt for not zesting oranges) and consequently a bit less sugar. I mixed the pistachios in right away, so only did 1 refrigerator session, not 2. Ovens are narrower in Switzerland, so the 2 trays at a time is not a great idea, despite switching the trays I overcooked the top tray and had to leave the second in longer. However these didn't spread at all, so you could put more than 12 on the cookie sheet. Didn't bother with chocolate either.
andreahad
Geneva, Switzerland
12/29/2018
These cookies are beautiful. I just won a cookie competition with this recipe (insert applause). Huge hit across the board and great that they're accidentally gluten free so all can enjoy. Perfect flavor combination and texture. I ground my own cardamom pods since that's what I had on hand, used a little more orange peel than called for and didn't use the chocolate. They were delicious. Will make these again and again for sure.
clebron
Brooklyn, NY
12/19/2018
Wonderful cookies - a big hit. I didn't use the chocolate and they were perfect.
cookinfor4
San Francisco Bay Area
12/14/2018
Cookies came out too orange-y and too intensely sweet.
lillyh
12/23/2017
These cookies are great. First time I made them I put chocolate on half of them. I felt the chocolate overwhelmed the taste of the cookie. ( I am a chocohaulic, so I surprised myself making this observation!) Today I will make them all WITHOUT the chocolate. These are nice cookies to have with Chai.
lindamaryjane
Rochester NY
10/14/2017
These were absolutely delicious and could be used for Passover or everyday. I made them exactly as the recipe suggested and would agree that rolling the logs in the pistachios was more difficult than it needed to be. You could just add them to the dough, or put them on top before baking. I did not use the chocolate, but I am sure that would be nice too.
Anonymous
Connecticut
4/19/2017
These are wonderful savory cookies, however you can save yourself a step by just adding the pistachios to the dough instead of rolling the log in them. I did just that and then pinched off a bit of dough, rolled them into small balls and then flattened them slightly. Much simpler!
Anonymous
NYnNnerNewnnew
4/19/2017
These were a Passover hit! I used triple filtered coconut oil (from Trader Joe's) to make sure I didn't get ANY coconut flavor (there were enough flavors already) and cane sugar because I didn't have white (more depth anyway). I undercooked them just a bit and they stayed nice and chewy. All my guests agreed they needn't be any crispier! I didn't have any chocolate on hand (I was making them at my parents' house and my dad had eaten the chocolate I'd left there for this purpose 😆), and they would have been great with the drizzle, but were still awesome without. These will definitely be a new addition to the recurring cookie rotation.
Anonymous
Los Angeles
4/13/2017
TagsCookieDessertPersianMiddle EasternAlmond FlourFlourPistachioNutChocolateCardamomSnackGluten FreeBakingElectric MixerRamadanPassoverEpicurious
See Related Recipes and Cooking Tips
- iconGallery47 Thanksgiving Cookie Recipes to Give Pie Some Competition
It’s never a bad idea to have a plate of festive cookies around for holiday snacking.
- iconGallery37 Almond Flour Recipes for Nuttier Cookies, Cakes, and Dinners
Put the bag of almond flour in your pantry to good use with these recipes, including plenty of gluten-free desserts.
- iconGallery37 Passover Desserts to End Your Seder on a Sweet Note
Coconut macaroons, matzo toffee, and so much more.
- iconGallery83 Christmas Cookies for the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
Who needs a holiday cookie swap? These are all worth baking and keeping for yourself.
- iconGallery37 Gluten-Free Cookies for All the Fun, Without the Wheat
Whether you’re craving melt-in-your-mouth meringues or easy peanut butter cookies, we’ve got all the festive holiday treats you need—hold the gluten.
- iconGallery59 Baked Goods That Don't Require All-Purpose Flour
You don't need AP flour to make these brownies, loaf cakes, cookies, scones, or crackers.
- iconGallery31 Persian Recipes for Nowruz and Beyond
Recipes for the Persian New Year (and any day of the year).
- iconGallery101 Ways to Cook With Almonds
They make great cakes. They make tasty bar snacks. They make perfect sense.
- iconGalleryOur Best Cookies for Easter
Give the bunny some competition with these homemade Easter treats.
