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With Passover in the rearview mirror, I’m thinking up recipes for the holidays ahead, including one you can serve for Yom HaAtzmaut, or Israel Independence Day, which starts at sundown April 30.
I strive to create desserts that aren’t overly sweet and that freeze well, which is why I was excited to dream up a new version of one of my favorite desserts, pistachio baklava.
I have loved baklava since childhood. As kids, we made our own homemade, honey-soaked baklava. Even during Passover, we’d use matzah in place of phyllo dough for a deliciously crunchy, nutty treat.
There’s nothing I love more than walking past a mountain of baklava in a market, with bright green pistachios peeking out of wispy, crispy dough with glistening syrup.
Baklava is present in cuisines across the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Of course, you will find it aplenty in Israel.
The dessert has variations unique to certain regions. Greek baklava is more likely to be made with walnuts, whereas Turkish baklava is often made with pistachios. My favorite is the latter, with sweet, creamy pistachios being my nut of choice. In a pile of baklava, pistachio is the first one I’ll choose.
There’s no one way to build baklava, by the way. It can be rolled, layered, folded or, in this case, reimagined into a cookie.
This recipe is an easy way to get the baklava flavor without the mess or trip to a Mediterranean market. With a blend of almond flour and all-purpose flour, the cookies are deliciously chewy and moist, with spice from cinnamon and cardamom and a subtle sweetness from honey. What makes these cookies reminiscent of baklava is a sticky-sweet date, honey and pistachio mixture that melts into the cookie dough as they bake.
These cookies spread, so make sure they have ample space on the baking tray. And make sure the date mixture covers enough of the dough to ensure you get a little taste of baklava goodness in each bite.
Another bonus: If you have leftover almond flour from Passover, this is your chance to use it up.
Note: These cookies freeze well, but the date topping does get sticky. So freeze and store them in a single layer.
Pistachio Baklava Cookies
Makes 16-18 cookies
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ¼ tsp. cardamom
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. kosher salt
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- ¼ tsp. lemon zest
Topping:
- ½ cup shelled pistachios
- 5 to 6 Medjool dates, pitted
- 1 Tbs. honey
- ⅛ tsp. kosher salt
In large bowl, combine almond flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, cardamom, cinnamon and salt.
In small bowl, combine egg, sugar, honey, melted butter, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Add to dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
Refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes.
Make the topping:
In food processor, pulse pistachios until they resemble a coarse meal. Add dates, honey and salt, pulsing for a few seconds until sticky. If your dates are dry, add a little more honey, as needed.
Remove cookie dough from refrigerator, use a tablespoon measure to form a heaping-tablespoon-sized cookie, rolling dough into balls. Flatten dough into ½-inch thick discs. Take 1 heaping teaspoon of pistachio mixture and flatten it to fit the top of the dough, placing on each cookie.
Bake at 350 for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden.
Note: The cookies will spread. Let cool on the baking tray and transfer to airtight container or bag for up to 4 days on the counter, or up to 3 months in freezer.