Cherry Pistachio Cookies {Grain & Gluten Free}

Just as beautiful to gaze upon as they are unforgettably delicious to eat, my new grain and gluten free cherry pistachio cookies are like little cookie presents, y'all. A cassava flour and sugar base set the dainty, delicate eggless cookie stage. Softened butter adds a luxurious body to the biscuit, while almond extract brings pops of special event palate elegance into the mix. Chopped maraschino cherries and roasted, salted pistachios lend the final 'wow' factor, making these easy, 8-ingredient delicacies the perfect anytime treat. Yep and yay...

Disclosure: A Sprinkling of Cayenne is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. 

It's Been Christmas Around Here for Months Now, Y'all...

Today is the eve of Christmas Eve in the year 2020. And it's been a very strange year for all of us indeed. 

In fact, this year was so strange that I asked Mark if we could put up a Christmas tree in our bedroom in early September, y'all! For starters, I honestly felt like I just didn't get enough Christmas time last year. Nope. Not enough movies, not enough family time, and not enough lights and festive decorations. 

Then, when all the hoopla started earlier this year, I felt deflated. Crushed in my spirit. Heavy in my heart. And then it dragged on and on, with new daily drama added to the overflowing pot of sorrows almost daily. So, I felt that the only thing I could do was cheer up my surroundings and give all of my problems over to the Lord.

Once I left my worries on His altar, I (I mean Mark) put up our artificial Christmas tree in our bedroom. Then, I started my cheesy Christmas movie-watching marathon a full two months early. So, by now we've seen like 25 Hallmark-style Christmas chic flicks, with me love, love, loving them. And Mark tolerating them with cracks and 'pass-the-gluten-free-crackers-for-this-cheese' jokes because I think he needed to escape with them just as much as I did. 

We also got a second 'real' tree for the living room. And, the sparkling lights of the trees have continued to soothe our souls too, y'all. So now, to be honest, it's been Christmas here at the Liner house for a while now. And, now that this is really almost the real Christmas, I'm finally getting in the baking mood. 

So I Made Fruit & Nut Gluten Free Snowball Cookies

A few years ago, I made gluten free Louisiana pecan balls. They're the same as snowball cookies, Mexican wedding cookies and Russian tea cakes. I know, I know, for a cookie to have like four names it has to be easy and amazing. I can't imagine not having these types of cookies in my life. And, I'm assuming that you know exactly what they are because I truly believe that everyone does. 

But, this time I wanted something a bit different. So, I made the grain and/or gluten free snowball cookies with maraschino cherries and pistachios this time. I had them on hand already. And, the two flavors are so amazingly sophisticated together, y'all. Kind of like a grown-up peanut butter and jelly combination that screams 'this is a holiday or special event cookie' everybody!!

And, they're super easy to make, too. The only thing that you really have to remember about making these grain and gluten free cherry pistachio cookies is that the batter will be very, very crumbly. There's no eggs in this recipe. So, the binding is low. However, this way of making cookies produces an airiness that makes these a little more special to make because they're a lot more special to eat. For sure. 

How to Make Cherry Pistachio Cookies Grain & Gluten Free

Start the cherry pistachio cookies by rough-chopping the salted pistachios. Or, you can pulse them gently in your food processor. Some pieces will crumble, but that's totally ok:

Now, cream the butter and sugar until well-combined. Add the remaining ingredients, and stir until well incorporated:

Next, freeze the dough for 10 minutes. Then, use a cookie scoop to make about 35 half-moon cookies out of the batter. And, be patient and take your time with this step, as the crumbly batter needs your hands-on assistance getting packed it into the scoop. Just scoop, and then use your hands to compact the batter into the sccop. It goes a little slow at first. But, you'll get the hang of it quick and be done with them all before you know it:

Now, bake the maraschino cherry pistachio snowballs cookies for exactly 18 minutes, or until baked through but not browned. Next, let them cool completely on the cookie sheet, for at least one hour but the longer the better. The delicate cassava flour needs time to tighten around the other gluten free cookie ingredients.

Then, when you eat them, the cookies will stay together instead of crumbling into your hands after the first bite. Finally, dust each cookie with sifted confectioner's sugar right before serving.

The first thing that you notice about these grain and gluten free cherry pistachio cookies is that they are light-as-air, y'all. Then, the hints of almond extract dazzle your palate while the maraschino cherries and salted pistachios electrify your tongue. 

Oh, y'all! I'm straight in love with these cookies. They're soooo flavorful and beautiful, and they look like Christmas, too. Yep.

Share these grain and gluten free cherry pistachio cookies with those whose very presence makes your heart illuminate from the inside out. Much love, and see y'all on the yum side...

Cherry Pistachio Cookies {Grain & Gluten Free}

Easy & eggless, these grain and gluten free cherry pistachio cookies are just as delicious to eat as they are impressive to serve to your loved ones and guests.

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert/Holiday

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cherry pistachio cookies, gluten free cherry pistachio cookies, grain free cherry pistachio cookies, pistachio cookies

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 18 minutes

Servings: 20

Author: Lyn Corinne Liner

Ingredients

For the Grain & Gluten Free Cherry Pistachio Cookies

• 1 cup shelled salted pistachios
• ½ cup maraschino cherries
• 1 ½ cups cassava flour, sifted
• ¼ cup gluten free baking powder, or ½ teaspoon baking soda and ½ teaspoon cream of tartar for grain free)
• ½ cup sugar
• ¾ cup softened butter
• 2 teaspoons gluten free almond extract
• ½ cup confectioner's sugar, sifted, optional

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cream softened butter and sugar together in a bowl or mixer bowl until well-combined. 
• Add all remaining ingredients, except for the confectioner's sugar, to the bowl.
• Stir until well-combined. (The dough will be very crumbly).
• Cover with plastic wrap, then place the bowl into the freezer for 10 minutes.
• Use a cookie scoop to form the dough into half-balls. Since the dough is so crumbly, use your fingers to pack the dough into the back of the scoop. Then, reshape the half-balls shape slightly after releasing the dough, if necessary.
• Line the cherry pistachio cookies dough in rows about an inch apart on one to two very lightly greased cookie sheets. (I got 36 cookies total and used two small baking sheets)
• Bake for 18 minutes.
• Let cool completely on the baking racks for at least 1 hour before serving, but preferably 3 hours or more.
• Sift powdered sugar lightly over each cookie right before serving.

Notes

Since this is an eggless recipe, the very delicate cassava flour dough needs to cool for a while to maintain its shape while you are actually eating it. If you serve it too soon, the cookies will fall apart in your hand. This makes these cookies perfect for making ahead, as they will best retain their shape after sitting out in a covered dish overnight. 

The confectioner's sugar topping is optional. You might want to serve them this way for the holidays, and without the sugary topping the rest of the year. They taste fantastic either way, and the colors of the cookies are impressive on their own, as well. 

If the dough gets too crumbly while you are using the cookie scoop, just pop it back into the freezer until it's hard enough to work with again. 

Click here to follow on Instagram @asprinklingofcayenne