Welcome to December, aka Cookie Month!! Hooray! We finally made it! Don’t you just love a month when you don’t need an excuse to bake cookies?!! First up on the hit parade and one that I think will go like gangbusters on any holiday tray are these wonderful, addictive and eye-catching Chocolate Pistachio Sables!

Once again, I’m kicking myself for being a procrastinator cause I clipped this recipe out some 10 years ago and only just recently got around to trying them! And I ❤️ ❤️❤️ pistachios! And of course chocolate!! Oh well, better late than never, right?

Guys, these are deeply chocolate-y with a sort of melt-in-your-mouth sandy texture and the great crunch of pistachios. Plus a little kick from flaky sea salt that you sprinkle on top of the cookies right before they bake. Usually I’m not the biggest fan of salt on cookies, but here it just really works well!

And what’s especially nice about these is that they come together easily and can be made days ahead, so that when you’re ready, you simply slice, salt and bake. (you can even freeze the dough logs for up to month if you like). Easy-peasy and done!

In fact, the only thing that’s not easy about these nutty, chocolate cookies is not eating them!!

Here’s to a month of great cookies (any maybe some healthy food too!😘)

Chocolate Pistachio Sables

Makes about 3 dozen

Prep Time: 15 minutes; plus several hours of chilling time. Bake Time: 10-12 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

• ½ cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder

• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

• ¼ teaspoon baking soda

• 20 tablespoons (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temp

• 1 ¼ cups light brown sugar, lightly packed

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 large egg white

• 5 ounces good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped

• 1 cup unsalted, shelled raw pistachios, coarsely chopped

• Flaky sea salt, like Maldon (optional)

The Recipe

1. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda together and set aside.

2. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together on medium-high speed for a few minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Then add in the egg white and mix just until combined, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold in the chocolate and pistachios with the spatula.

3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and roll each piece into an 8-inch long log that’s about 1 ½ inches wide. Wrap tightly in parchment paper and chill for several hours or up to 2 days—you want the dough to be firm so these stay together when you slice them. You can even freeze the logs for up to a month if you like. Just wrap well.

4. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a couple of rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a serrated knife to cut the logs into ¼-inch thick rounds and arrange on the sheets, leaving about ½-inch between the cookies (these don’t spread too much). Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with the sea salt if using.

5. Bake one sheet at a time, reversing the sheet halfway through the baking time, about 10-12 minutes in total. You want the edges to be set and the centers to feel dry, you won’t really be able to tell by how dark they get. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Enjoy!

Note: Recipe adapted from an old issue of Bon Appetit Magazine.