Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies
I’ve been wanting to make an olive oil chocolate chip cookie for a while, and that’s how this one started out. But as I worked on the recipe, it ended up much more chocolatey and brownie-like than I originally intended. And I have to say, I’m not mad about it. This is a rich, fudgy dream of a cookie. Say hello to Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies! I have a feeling you’ll love them.
Olive Oil In Cookies? Yep, You Read That Right.
Cookies aren’t the first thing I think of when I think of olive oil. Pasta, bread, salad dressing, roasted veggies…there are a million and one savory ways to use it, but olive oil is fantastic in dessert recipes as well. Especially chocolatey ones.
The grassy, peppery, slightly bitter flavor of Extra Virgin Olive Oil lends itself well to semisweet or bittersweet chocolate. And oil creates a softer, fudgier cookie than butter does — plus you get that crackly top that all great brownies have. Check it out:
Another benefit of using olive oil over butter? You don’t have to wait for your butter to soften! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to bake cookies but didn’t have room-temperature butter. (Yes, there are ways to soften butter quickly, but I always manage to melt it instead of just soften it). But with olive oil? Cookies any time!
Choosing An Olive Oil
When choosing an olive oil for baking, always pick the highest-quality olive oil you can get. If the sheer number of olive oil choices overwhelms you, just make sure to use one that you like the taste of. This isn’t the time to use up an oil you don’t like. If it doesn’t taste good to you on your salad or pasta, you won’t like how it tastes in your cookies.
Now, if you’re not a fan of the grassy, peppery flavor of EVOO, you can definitely use a lighter olive oil here. You’ll still get a fudgy, crackly, brownie-like cookie. And it will be every bit as delicious.
Chocolate and Pistachios Are a Match Made In Heaven
I LOVE pistachios. Ok, truly, I love just about any kind of nut — pistachios, almonds, pecans, macadamias, you name it (cue Best in Show). I’ve never met a nut I didn’t like.
I’m usually a fan of walnuts or pecans in brownies, but for these cookies I went fancy and added pistachios. The combination of fudgy dark chocolate and pistachios (with a little help from a touch of almond extract) is, quite honestly, divine. Lightly roasted pistachios are ideal (you want a toasty flavor but you also want to keep that bright green color), and either salted or unsalted will work.
Not a fan of pistachios? I won’t hold it against you. Try whatever nut you prefer — almonds, walnuts, or pecans would be especially tasty in these cookies.
Whichever nut you choose, I think you’ll love these Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies. Bake up a batch and let me know what you think in the comments below!
Happy Baking!
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Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 c olive oil*
- 1/2 c granulated sugar
- 1 c brown sugar, packed
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 c all-purpose flour
- 1/2 c spelt flour
- 3/4 c dutch-process cocoa powder**
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- 1 c chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
- 3/4 c pistachios
- coarse sea salt, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with silicone liners or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl using a hand mixer, combine olive oil and both sugars, and mix until incorporated.
- Add eggs, vanilla, and almond extract and beat on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes, or until mixture is thick and caramel-colored.
- Slowly add the flour mixture, mixing on low until just combined. Scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure all of the dry ingredients are mixed in.
- Add chocolate chips and pistachios and mix until incorporated.
- Use a medium cookie scoop or a spoon to scoop dough into balls. Place on prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cookies begin to look dry and cracked. Optional: sprinkle with coarse sea salt when you pull them out of the oven.Allow cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for 5-10 minutes, then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Or freeze for up to 2 months.
Notes
6 Comments
Darci Bandi
Made as written and they were AMAZING. Taste testers gave rave reviews. Next time I am gonna add in some jammy bits from King Arthur.
Jamie
Awesome! So glad you liked them. And I bet those jammy bits would be delish in these cookies!
Kat
Amazing base recipe for brownie cookies! Thank you for the great recipe–the texture of the chocolate cookie is perfect, the exact brownie-like texture I wanted, and the olive oil and salt elevates the flavor. I will definitely be trying more of your recipes for holiday cookies this year.
I added about 1/4 cup of dry sour cherries in place of the chocolate chips, and think these would be amazing with other fruits/nuts/etc too. But I was looking for a pistachio version when I found your site.
Notes: I reduced the sugar a bit due to preference (1/4c white and 2/3c brown) and used almond flour for the spelt as I didn’t have the latter.
Kat
I meant 1/4 cup of sour cherries in place of SOME of the chocolate chips. I still used chocolate chips as directed.
Jamie
I’m so glad you liked them! And OMG I bet sour cherries are amazing in these! I’m gonna have to try that.
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