These vegan pistachio cardamom shortbread cookies taste just like nankhatai biscuits. They are crumbly textured and crispy and delicious and they couldn't be easier to make.
![Rows of vegan pistachio cardamom shortbread cookies](https://holycowvegan.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/pistachio-cardamom-shortbread-cookies.jpg)
There are some food flavors that stay with us all our lives, and haunt us when we haven't met them in a while. The flavor of these Crumbly vegan Pistachio-Cardamom Shortbread cookies is, for my hubby Desi, something like that.
Growing up in India, one of the fanciest cookies you could buy were Nankhatai, a shortbread-textured cookie with an incredibly soft, melt-in-the-mouth texture and hints of cardamom and nuts (see my vegan nankhatai recipe). I loved these cookies, as did Desi who has a sweet tooth to beat all others.
For days now, he had been asking me to make him a cookie flavored with cardamom and pistachios, but I held back. While I have, in my pre-vegan days, made Nankhatai using ghee, I was not sure how it would turn out with vegan ingredients.
Yesterday, I decided to throw my fear to the winds. And these cookies were perfect. The pistachio gives these cookies a lovely, barely-green color and the flavor is to die for.
Desi loved them, but I too couldn't keep my hand out of the cookie jar!
Looking for more vegan cookie recipes?
- Vegan Almond Flour Cookies, Naturally Sweetened
- Vegan Shortbread Cookies
- Vegan Orange Almond Biscotti
- Vegan Gluten-Free Italian Amaretti Cookies
- Vegan Coconut Almond Macaroons
![Closeup of pistachio cardamom cookies](https://holycowvegan.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/vegan-pistachio-cardamom-cookies.jpg)
![Rows of vegan pistachio cardamom shortbread cookies](https://holycowvegan.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/pistachio-cardamom-shortbread-cookies-360x360.jpg)
Vegan Pistachio-Cardamom Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ⅓ cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ cup vegan butter
- ½ cup avocado oil or any neutral oil
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch ( mixed well with 2 tablespoon water)
- ⅓ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup pistachios (shelled. Powder them fine in a food processor or spice grinder, and leave a few kernels whole)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter, oil and sugar together until light and white and fluffy
- Add the cornstarch-water mixture, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract and blend well until mixture is smooth.
- Add flour, cardamom powder and pistachio powder and mix.
- Roll into small balls, about 1-inch in diameter, and place on a greased cookie sheet, one inch apart. Press down slightly to form discs. Press a pistachio, whole or half, into the center of each cookie.
- Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 11-12 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through the baking. Remove when the cookies have a hint of golden-brown color on top.
- Place the baking sheet on a rack and let the cookies cool completely before removing them gently with a ladle.
Prue
These were wonderful, thank you!
Orah Ruth
I tried this using unrefined coconut oil, no cardamom and ground pecans. It was very good.