Pistachio Crusted Cardamom Shortbread

My favorite way to spend a rainy afternoon is in a bookstore. I usually browse through the design, travel, fashion and art sections for inspiration and daydreaming, but this time I found myself drawn to the corner of the store where the cookbooks are kept. I scoured the shelves and came across a book of recipes from the London restaurant, Ottolenghi. This shortbread recipe immediately stood out (I mean, pistachio-crusted anything is probably going to be amazing). It was a really simple recipe and the combination of buttery shortbread plus pistachios, plus cardamom was incredible! I recommend pairing these tasty little biscuits with a sorbet (strawberry-basil sorbetto is what I used) or a black tea.

Pistachio Crusted Cardamom Shortbread

Ottolenghi Recipe

Makes up to 20 cookies

8 cardamom pods

200g unsalted butter 

(I recommend Plugrá butter, which is ultra-creamy and ultra-delicious)

25g ground rice (or rice flour)

240g plain flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

35g icing sugar

60 shelled pistachio nuts

1 lightly beaten egg

2 tbsp vanilla sugar

Crush the cardamom pods, then remove the seeds from inside and crush them into a fine powder.

Mix together the butter, ground rice, flour, salt, ground cardamom and icing sugar. Once it comes together, stop mixing.

Turn the dough out the counter and form it into a log. Wrap the log in cling film and then let it sit in the refrigerator for an hour.

Chop pistachios into small pieces, and scatter them on a flat tray. Once dough has been chilled, cover it in beaten egg, and then roll into the pistachios. Wrap the dough back up in the cling film, and put it back into the fridge for another half an hour.

Pre-heat the oven to 150C (302F).

Slice the log into cookies. Lay them out onto baking parchment and dust with vanilla sugar. Bake for approximately 20 minutes. Do not over bake, the cookies should be pale in colour.

Can be kept in a sealed container for up to one week.