Cherry Pistachio Cookies

Mix flour and baking soda together and set aside. Cream butter, pistachio butter and salt. Add half of the eggs and mix. Add half of the flour; process to combine – add remaining egg and flour. Transfer cookie dough in a pastry bowl; mix in dried cranberries. Scoop out onto a baking tray lined with silicone mat and chill. Cookie dough can be made days in advance and kept refrigerated for days.

Heat up pistachio for about 6 to 8 min in a 350ºF (180ºC) oven. Let cool a bit and process with oil and almond extract until it turns into a smooth paste. Set aside.

Bring water and sugar to a boil; cook for for 3 to 5 min and throw in pistachios. Stir constantly on medium high heat. The sugar will begin to crystalize, continue stirring to coat each nut with syrup for about 10 minutes. The more you cook the more color. Transfer on silicone mat to cool and store in a sealed container at room temperature. Save leftovers for later use.

Arrange chilled cookies onto baking tray lined with a silicone mat and bake at 350ºF/180ºC for 10 min. Stuff cookies with pistachio butter in the center, top with a dollop of cherry jam and one cherry in syrup. Bake again for an additional 12 min. (You may want to reduce baking time if using convection oven). Right after baking, add 3 more dots of pistachio butter and top with some broken chocolate disks and caramelized pistachios and more cherries if desired. Serve at room temperature. Enjoy!

Pistachio butter Dark cherry jam Dark sweet cherry in syrup in jar or canned, drained Chocolate disks Crushed and whole frosted pistachios.