These soft, naturally sweetened Pistachio Thumbprint Cookies are full of pistachio flavor and elegance! Easy, gluten-free cookies made with just 5 ingredients.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
These pistachio thumbprint cookies are gluten-free and naturally sweetened, made with only 5 ingredients, and are SO good!
Inspired by my almond flour thumbprint cookies and a few jars of quality pistachio cream I brought from France, I decided to make thumbprint cookies with a pistachio cream center.
After making Dubai chocolate muffins I completely fell in love with the luscious pistachio cream!
We all loved them! So easy to make, you don’t need butter, mixer or time to chill the dough. With creamy centers, soft cookies and chewy edges, these pistachio cream cookies are fast, just melt-in-your-mouth and are perfect with a cup of coffee or espresso.
Ingredients for Pistachio Thumbprint Cookies
- Pistachios: Buy shelled lightly salted roasted pistachios for the most flavor. Add a bit of salt if you’re using unsalted, but roasted are highly recommended. If you buy not lightly salted kind, it’s OK too, I think.
- Almond flour: Superfine blanched almond flour or homemade almond flour binds ingredients together and adds volume to the cookie dough. Almond meal can work, but might be a bit gritty.
- Maple syrup: Adds natural sweetness. You can substitute honey, agave, or a liquid sugar-free sweetener.
- Vanilla extract: Use pure vanilla extract. It adds a lot of flavor to any cookies, I always add it.
- Pistachio cream: The creamy, nutty filling that goes right in the thumbprint. If you can’t find pistachio cream, pistachio butter will work but it’s less sweet and a bit thicker.
How to Make Pistachio Thumbprint Cookies
This pistachio thumbprint cookies recipe makes about 16 cookies, but you can double or triple it if you’re baking for a crowd.
Preheat your oven to 350 F and line a large baking sheet.
- Grind pistachios: In a high speed blender or food processor, process the pistachios until fine with some bigger pieces is OK.
- Mix dry ingredients: Transfer to a large bowl, then stir them together with the almond flour.
- Add wet ingredients: Add the maple syrup and vanilla extract, then mix with a spatula until it forms a sticky dough. Add 1 tablespoon of almond flour at a time, if needed.
- Shape them: Scoop about a tablespoon of dough, roll it into a ball, and place it on your lined baking sheet. Press a small thumbprint into the center of each with your thumb or the back of a measuring teaspoon.
- Bake and fill: Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges start to turn golden. Fill each warm thumbprint cookie with a teaspoon of pistachio cream and enjoy!
Tips for Best Results
- To avoid sticky dough: Add 1-3 tablespoons of almond flour and stir. It all depends on how you measure ingredients, sometimes tiny adjustment makes all the difference.
- To make uniform indents: Use the back of a measuring teaspoon. I think I used 1/2 teaspoon and it worked perfectly.
- For smooth edges: After gently pressing the thumbprint, wet your finger and gently smooth any cracks back out.
- Measure flour correctly: Scoop the flour into your measuring cup by the spoonful, then level it off with the back of a knife.
Toppings Ideas
I kept these simple, but feel free to get creative and make them extra festive!
- Chocolate: Drizzle melted chocolate over the top or drop a little Nutella in the center of each cookie.
- Powdered sugar: Give your cookies a light dusting of powdered sugar for a sweet, snowy finish.
- Jam: Add a tiny spoonful of your favorite jam on top of the pistachio cream for a sweet, colorful pop. Raspberry jam is my personal favorite.
- Chopped nuts: Sprinkle a few finely chopped pistachios, almonds, or pecans on top for extra crunch.
- Holiday cookies: Sprinkle crushed candy canes or red and green sugar on top for a holiday-ready touch.
How to Store
Store: Our pistachio thumbprint cookies didn’t last a day, but if you manage to save some, cover them with a linen towel or pop them in a container with a lid and they’ll stay fresh for up to 4 days.
Freeze: Keep cookies in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let thaw on the counter for a few hours before enjoying.
Reheat: If you like them a bit warm and soft, just microwave for 10-15 seconds.
More Cookies Recipes to Try
- Healthy snowball cookies
- 3 ingredient Nutella cookies
- Almond flour shortbread cookies
- Almond flour sugar cookies
Pistachio Thumbprint Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup lightly salted roasted pistachios, shelled
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup pistachio cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line large baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a high speed blender or food processor, add pistachios and process until ground. Transfer into a large bowl along with almond flour and stir to combine.
- Add maple syrup and vanilla extract, using a spatula mix until sticky dough forms.
- Scoop 1 tablespoon of cookie dough, roll into a ball and place on previously prepared baking sheet. I ended up with 16 cookies. Gently make an indent with a thumb or back of a measuring spoon in each.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until they just start to brown.
- Remove from the oven, fill each opening with 1 teaspoon of pistachio cream and enjoy!
Notes
- Store: Covered with a linen towel or any container with a lid for 3-4 days. Honestly, ours are gone in 24 hours.
- Freeze: In an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter for a few hours.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Very easy and fast to make. Delicious! I ground up Wonderful ° brand shelled pistachios that came sweetened with cinnamon and sugar. I rolled up the balls with buttered hands and rolled in Swerve powdered sugar. I had no pistachio paste so I thinned peanut marzipan I had on hand with scant amount of coconut milk to fill in the spoon depressions on top. They browned perfectly in 13 minutes. Good and gooey inside but the cookie was fully baked. Thank-you!
So glad they turned out so well! Your pistachio and marzipan twists sound delicious — thanks for sharing all the details!