Inspired by the famous Dubai chocolate bar, these cookies are a fresh twist on the classic cookie game. They’re a delicious and unique chocolate chip cookie with crushed pistachios for that extra crunch and dimension. They have a luscious surprise in the center — toasted kataifi noodles coated in homemade pistachio cream. Kataifi noodles, also known as kadaif, are a type of shredded phyllo dough used predominantly in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. When incorporating kataifi noodles into this cookie, they’re first toasted until golden brown and crispy to bring out their nutty flavor, light, crispy texture, and satisfying crunch, which add a new dimension to these cookies. In each cookie, you get melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chips, a chewy touch from the pistachios, and crunch from the kataifi. These are easy to make and a treat you don’t want to miss out on!
Yields 20 cookies
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Line a
baking sheet with Gefen Parchment Paper.
First, prepare the kataifi. Heat a large pan over medium-low heat and add the kataifti noodles. Toast for 7–10 minutes, until toasted and golden brown, stirring every little bit to make sure they don’t burn.
To prepare the cookie dough, cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix. Then add the flour, salt, and baking soda and mix until combined. Add the chocolate chips, pistachios, and 1/2 cup toasted kataifi noodles and mix.
Place the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes for an easier time making the
cookies.
To prepare the pistachio cream, place the pistachios in a food processor fitted with the S-blade and blend. Gradually add the oil, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla extract. Process for four to six minutes until everything is smooth and creamy.
Transfer the pistachio cream to a bowl. Add the remaining toasted kataifi
noodles and mix.
To assemble the cookies, take a large heaping tablespoon of cookie
dough and flatten it in your hand. Create a space in the center and put
in a teaspoon of the pistachio-coated kataifi. Carefully close the cookie
dough around the filling to create a ball. Place the cookie on the prepared
baking sheet.
Repeat with remaining dough and kataifi. Bake for 15 minutes.
Allow cookies to cool. Once cool, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second intervals until smooth. Drizzle chocolate onto cookies.
Notes:
Cookie dough can be frozen up to three months; bake from frozen, adding two to three minutes. Baked cookies freeze up to two months; thaw at room temperature. Pistachio cream can be refrigerated up to five days or frozen up to one month; thaw before use.
Description:
Photography by Chay Berger
Food Prep by Leah Hamaoui
Easy
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Some questions...Are the pistachios to be salted or unsalted? Roasted or not? How much pistachio cream should this yield? Can we use prepared pistachio cream, and if so, how much?
I would say roasted and unsalted. It should yield around 2 cups. Yes, you could use prepared and it should use around 1 3/4 cup - 2 cups.
for yamitmac-com
Firstly I would love to inform you that I make these cookies for my husband all time, the exact way Leah- the great Mrs. Hamaoui makes them. I am not a high elite baker like you, but for sure she is the Elite creme de la creme so..... Maybe your oven doesn't work as well as hers.
Mrs Hamaoui- you are the legend I make my husband every recipe you came out with and he just blesses the food. He specifically makes me bake these cookies for kollel.
Also, the articles she writes is something fantastic!!!!!
So Leah KEEP IT GOING!!!!!!!!!
People like me enjoy your stuff so don't let people get in the way!
You got it girl
I’m not sure what level of baker the recipe creator is or how old this recipe is, but I’d like to offer some feedback based on my experience. I’m a fairly advanced baker, but I found the recipe instructions lacked enough detail for consistent results, especially for less experienced bakers.
First, the absence of step-by-step photos or a video makes it harder to follow the process confidently. Visuals are extremely helpful for clarifying instructions and showing important details like consistency, portion size, and assembly.
For example, in preparing the pistachio cream, it would have been helpful to see a photo or video of the correct final consistency. Additionally, stating the expected final quantity of pistachio cream would be useful. That way, someone using store-bought pistachio cream (as I did) could better gauge how much to use. Instead, I had to estimate, which added some uncertainty.
Regarding the assembly, the first step didn’t work well for me as written. Using a tablespoon of dough with a teaspoon of pistachio-coated kataifi made it very difficult to close the dough around the filling. Again, a photo or video would have helped illustrate the technique. I ended up adjusting by using a tablespoon of dough, a half teaspoon of filling, topping it with another teaspoon of dough, and rolling it into a ball.
At 350°F for 15 minutes, the cookies were underbaked and spread too much. I increased the baking temperature to 375°F, and the second batch came out better — though without photos, I’m still not sure exactly how they were intended to look. That said, they taste very good, and I’m sure my kids will love them — they care more about flavor than appearance!
I agree on all points.