Inspired by Persian flavours, these shortbread cookies are fragrant, buttery but light — the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea. The best part? They are simple to prepare and the dough can be made ahead of time and frozen.
Fun fact: Both rosewater and pistachio are thought to have originated from Iran and are commonly used in Middle Eastern cuisine. In Iranian, pistachios are called “the smiling nut” because the split shell resembles a smile. We hope these delightful cookies will bring a smile to your face.
What you’ll need
(Makes 12-15 cookies)
- 115g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 50g granulated sugar
- 145g all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp rose water
- one pinch salt
- 2 tbsp dried rose petals, slightly crushed
- 1/4 cup white chocolate
- 1 tbsp pistachios, finely chopped
How to make it
- Preheat oven to 180 deg C/350 deg F. Line a baking sheet with baking/parchment paper and set aside.
- Beat butter with sugar. With mixer on low speed, add flour, vanilla, rose water, salt, rose petals, white chocolate and pistachios until you get a crumbly dough.
- Shape the dough into a flat disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roll out half the dough in between two sheets of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inch thick. Place in the freezer for 5 minutes. Cut the cookies out with your cookie cutter.
- Place the cookies onto the parchment-lined baking sheet 1 inch apart. Bake for 20 minutes or until the edges of the cookies just start to brown. Cool completely on a rack.
- Best enjoyed with a pot of rosebud tea.