Pistachio Coins Food

PISTACHIO COINS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Make dough:
• In a small bowl whisk together egg and extracts. In a food processor pulse together flour, pistachios, sugar, and salt until combined well (do not finely grind nuts). Add butter in pieces and pulse just until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg mixture with motor running and pulse just until dough forms a ball. Turn dough out onto a work surface and with heel of hand press dough together just until smooth and cohesive.
• Form level teaspoons of dough into balls and arrange about 1 inch apart on baking sheets. With your thumb gently make an indentation in center of each ball, pressing down almost to bottom.
• Bake cookies in batches in lower third of oven until bottoms are pale golden, about 12 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets on racks 5 minutes and transfer with a spatula to racks to cool completely.
• Make topping:
• In a small heavy saucepan melt butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring until smooth, and remove pan from heat. Coarsely chop (keeping separate) pistachios and cranberries.
• Working with 10 cookies at a time, spoon 1/4 teaspoon chocolate mixture into each indentation and sprinkle pistachios and cranberries over chocolate centers. Let chocolate centers set 30 minutes. Cookies keep, layered between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container at cool room temperature, 10 days.

PISTACHIO-ORANGE CHOCOLATE COINS

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and oil the paper. Combine the chocolate chips and shortening in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring, until smooth and melted.
• Spoon the chocolate into 1 1/2-inch circles on the prepared pan. Let cool slightly. Top with the pistachios and candied orange peel. Refrigerate until firm.

PISTACHIO-ORANGE CHOCOLATE COINS

Steps:

• Melt 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips with 2 teaspoons shortening in the microwave. Spoon into 1 1/2-inch circles (about 20) on an oiled parchment-lined baking sheet. Let cool slightly, then top with chopped pistachios and candied orange peel. Refrigerate until firm.

PISTACHIO CRANBERRY ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Make dough:
• Stir together flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
• Beat together butter, granulated sugar, and zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing until dough just comes together in clumps, then mix in pistachios and cranberries. Gather and press dough together, then divide into 2 equal pieces. Using a sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper as an aid, form each piece of dough into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Square off long sides of each log to form a bar, then chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until very firm, at least 2 hours.
• Slice and bake cookies:
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Brush egg over all 4 long sides of bars (but not ends). Sprinkle decorative sugar on a separate sheet of parchment or wax paper and press bars into sugar, coating well.
• Cut each bar crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices, rotating bar after cutting each slice to help keep square shape. (If dough gets too soft to slice, freeze bars briefly until firm.) Arrange cookies about 1/2 inch apart on lined baking sheets.
• Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are pale golden, 15 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies from parchment to racks using a slotted spatula and cool completely.

PISTACHIO SHORTBREAD COINS

Steps:

• Pulse butter, sugar, and salt in a food processor until smooth. Add flour and pulse until a dough forms. Stir in pistachios. Shape dough into two 12-inch, 1 1/4-inch diameter logs, tightly wrap in plastic and freeze until firm, 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Cut dough into 1/4-inch slices and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are set and barely golden at edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.