Who doesn’t love buttery, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookies? Especially at this time of year, when it’s all about holiday baking and cookies galore! I’ve made lemon rosemary shortbread before and they were divine—earthy rosemary paired with zesty lemon is such an irresistible combo.

This time, I wanted to switch things up. As a big fan of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern flavours, I drew inspiration from that region and came up with a new trio: orange, cardamom, and pistachios. The result? A cookie that’s rich and buttery yet wonderfully bright and citrusy, with a lovely texture contrast from the pistachios. I rolled the edges in demerara sugar for an extra bit of crunch (and an added hint of caramel!) without making the cookies overly sweet.

The only thing I might tweak next time is using freshly ground cardamom for a more pronounced flavour. But truly—no complaints. These cookies are addictive! After devouring more than a few myself, I brought the rest to work, and they disappeared in no time. My colleagues absolutely loved them.

If you’re looking for something a little different—a fun twist on a classic—give these cookies a try this holiday season! And if you’re craving more shortbread cookies, Whipped Shortbread Cookies are always a hit!

Did you make this recipe?

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ORANGE CARDAMOM PISTACHIO SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Makes 20 – 24 cookies

Ingredients:

227g unsalted butter, room temperature
100g icing sugar, sifted
250g all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
zest of 1 orange
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped
1/2 cup demerara sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 325F (163C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt and cardamom.

3. In a large bowl, beat butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Stir in orange zest and vanilla.

5. Add in flour mixture and orange juice. Mix until just incorporated.

6. Fold in pistachios.

7. Roughly form the cookie dough into a ball and divide in half. On a 12″ long piece of parchment or wax paper, use your hands to roll one half of the dough into a log about 2″ to 2.5″ in diameter. Sprinkle some demerara sugar on the parchment/wax paper, and then gently roll the log over the sugar to coat the outside. Remove any remaining demerara sugar, then use the parchment/wax paper to tightly roll up the log, tuck the ends under and place in the fridge. Repeat the procedure with the other half of the dough.

8. Refrigerate the logs for at least 2 hours until they are firm enough to slice. Then slice about 1/2″ thick rounds and place them on the baking sheet, at least 2 inches apart.

9. Bake for 15 minutes or until the bottom edge of the cookies are lightly brown. Remove cookies onto wire rack to cool.

Tip: For any cake decorators who have a couple of those 11″-long semi-cylindrical flower formers, this is a great tool to use to maintain the shape of the logs! Once the dough has been rolled into a log and wrapped up, just place on a flower former to chill!