Pistachio Shortbread with Dark Chocolate
This one is for the pistachio lovers out there. I'm so excited to share this recipe – I just loved the way these shortbread turned out! Ground pistachios replace some of the flour of a typical shortbread recipe, chopped pistachios are mixed in for a nutty crunch, finally more ground pistachios are dusted across the top for even more pistachio flavor and that hint of green color. Then the bottom half gets dipped in tempered dark chocolate. Because….chocolate.
I used my cleaned out coffee grinder to grind the pistachios as well as the oats. Two 5-second pulses did the trick for both. (No need to clean in it out between.) This is America's Test Kitchen method for shaping and baking shortbread and it worked really well and yield generously sized cookies...nothing wrong with that!
Photo by Daniel Marks
Pistachio Shortbread with Dark Chocolate Recipe:
Yield:
16 large shortbread cookies
Difficulty:
Easy
Special equipment:
2-inch round cookie or biscuit cutter
Wooden skewer
Ingredients:
For the Shortbread:
32 grams unsalted pistachios, finely ground
53 grams old-fashioned rolled oats, finely ground
213 grams all-purpose flour
75 grams confectioners' sugar
½ tsp fine salt
14 TBSP (141 grams or 1 ¾ sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into thin slices
75 grams unsalted pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped
For the Pistachio Topping:
Optional, but that’s how you’ll get a little hint of green and a little more pistachio flavor.
16 grams unsalted pistachios, coarsely ground
1 heaping TBSP powdered sugar
For the Chocolate Coating:
142 grams (5 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate (not chocolate chips) finely chopped, separated
Instructions:
Make the shortbread:
Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set the ring of a 9-inch springform pan on top with the bottom removed. You won't need it.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, hand whisk together ground pistachios, ground oats, flour, sugar and salt until blended. Add butter to the bowl, set on the mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low-speed just until a rough dough forms and pulls away from the edges of the bowl. 5-10 minutes.
Turn dough out onto the prepared pan inside the springform ring. Pat it out as evenly as you can with your hands, then place a cut piece of parchment on top and continue to smooth it out using the back of a measuring cup. Using a 2-inch round cookie or biscuit cutter, remove the center of the shortbread. See the pictures below.
Why remove the center? The edge of the cookie will get too dark long before the center cooks through, so why not remove the center and bake it as a separate cookie?
Open the spring form collar but leave it in place. This is optional, but it gives the cookie a little room to grow. You can leave it in place, your edges will just be a little darker.
Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 250°F and continue to bake for another 10 minutes or until you see a little light color on the edges. Remove the shortbread from oven and turn the oven off. Immediately score (about halfway deep) the shortbread into 16 wedges with a sharp knife. Then poke holes - as seen in the photos - using a skewer, this allows the cookie to bake through though the oven is off. Return to the turned-off oven for an hour, keeping the door propped open an inch.
Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. Whisk together the pistachio and powdered sugar then sift over top of the cookies and let them cool to room temperature.
For the chocolate coating
Place a clean sheet of parchment on a baking sheet. Set aside 1 ounce / 28 grams of the finely chopped chocolate in medium size bowl.
Add the remaining 4 ounces of chopped chocolate to a heatproof bowl and set over a small saucepan with about an inch of simmering water, the water should not touch the bowl. Melt the chocolate until completely smooth, stirring so it doesn't burn on the bottom of the bowl. Do not let it simmer or boil. Once liquid, remove from heat, and pour over the reserved chocolate and stir vigorously until blended. Dip the bottom half of each shortbread into the chocolate, wiping off excess chocolate from the bottom, and place on the parchment lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 15 minutes until set then enjoy! Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Why not melt all of the chocolate at once? By doing this simple "seeding method" of tempering chocolate, it will be shiny and stable at room temperature.
Did you end up with a little extra chocolate?
Great! Stir in nuts, mini marshmallows, or anything else you can dream up spoon mounds onto parchment then refrigerate for some homemade candies. You won't be sad about it.
Photo by Daniel Marks
