Recipe: Chocolate-Cherry-Pistachio Shortbread

Salted Chocolate-Cherry-Pistachio Shortbread Cookies

This is one of our favorite holiday treats, cobbled together from all of our favorite shortbread recipes from over the years!

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

• 1/4 cup (25 grams) powdered sugar

• 1/4 cup (50 grams) light brown sugar

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (9 ounces/255 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch chunks

• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract

• ½ cup (76 grams) shelled unsalted pistachios, coarsely chopped

• ½ cup (76 grams) tart dried cherries, coarsely chopped

• 4 ounces (120 grams) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

• 1 large cold egg

• Turbinado sugar, for rolling

• Flaky sea salt for sprinkling

Directions

1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, add the pistachios and pulse until coarsely chopped. Remove and set aside. (If you don't have a food processor, you can do these same steps using a stand mixer or handheld mixer.)

2. Add the powdered sugar and brown sugar to the now-empty food processor and pulse to mix.

3. Add chunks of butter to the food processor a few at a time, and mix until the butter and sugar are creamed together. Scrape down the sides of the food processor with a spatula if necessary to ensure they are fully combined. Add the vanilla and mix until incorporated.

4. Add the flour and salt to the food processor, working in batches to prevent making a mess, pulsing a few times after each addition to incorporate. Beware over-mixing—you want a coarse mixture that looks cohesive and doughy but not damp or sticky.

5. At this point, you can add in the pistachios, cherries, and chocolate and mix until just incorporated. Feel free to add in batches if you're worried about clumping! If the food processor isn't large enough, you can transfer the dough to a bowl or other work surface and fold them in by hand. The important part here is to avoid over-mixing—you want to prevent the gluten from over-developing, which can make cookies tough.

6. Divide the dough in half and put each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold the plastic over the dough. Using your hands and the plastic wrap, roll the dough into a log. Don't stress about having a perfect cylinder! (Don't be afraid to make them compact. Shortbread is supposed to be dense. That's part of why it's so good.) Each half of the dough should get you roughly a 6-inch-long log, 2-ish inches in diameter.

7. Chill the dough logs in the refrigerator until totally firm, about 2 hours but preferably overnight. (If you're in a pinch, a flash-chill in the freezer for 30 minutes will do the job, but we recommend chilling for longer—overnight is ideal.)

8. When ready to bake, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Take the dough logs out of the refrigerator and brush the outside of the logs with the beaten egg; then roll them in turbinado sugar. This will give the cookies crispy, crunchy edges.

9. Use a serrated knife to slice each log into ½-inch-thick rounds. If the dough starts to fall apart or crack, just press it back together. Place the cookies on baking sheets about an inch apart (they will hardly spread). Sprinkle with Maldon salt.

10. Bake cookies until they have just started to brown along the edges—12 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving and enjoy!

11. Store leftovers (if there are any!) in an airtight container for up to 3 days.