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These chewy pistachio chocolate chip cookies are made with two kinds of chocolate, chopped pistachios, and dried cranberries. An easy cookie recipe that makes gorgeous cookies dotted with color and texture.

Table of Contents

Why You’ll Love These Chocolate Chip Pistachio Cookies
What You’ll Need
How to Make Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies
Tips For the Best Pistachio Cookies
Variation Ideas
Serving Suggestions
How to Store These Chocolate Chip Cookies
More Easy Cookie Recipes to Try
Get the Recipe

Homemade cookies are one of my favorite desserts to make. They satisfy your sweet tooth, are easy to make, and can be enjoyed pretty much any time of day. I usually send a cookie in school lunches and then may indulge in the evening with a warming glass of tea or Moon Milk.

These pistachio chocolate chip cookies hit all the right notes for me: they’re chewy, colorful, and each bite has different layers of texture thanks to the multitude of add-ins.

To make these cookies we’ll be using both dark chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips, chopped pistachios, and dried cranberries. This means that you’ll have the perfect balance of crunchy and chewy. If you eat these warm, you can add melty chocolate to that tempting list!

Why You’ll Love These Chocolate Chip Pistachio Cookies

Easy. This cookie recipe is pretty simple. You won’t need any fancy ingredients or complicated techniques. Just mix up the cookie dough in your stand mixer (affiliate link), chill, and bake.
Elegant. The variety of mix-ins add so much color and texture. These cookies are almost too pretty to eat. Almost.
Flexible. You can change up the add-ins to suit your tastes. Not a fan of pistachios? Use chopped walnuts or almonds. Want more sweetness? Use milk chocolate. I’ve shared some variation ideas in the post below.

Two cookies on decorative parchment paper with bowls of pistachios and salt

What You’ll Need

Here’s a quick overview of what you’ll need to make these chocolate chip cookies. Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for specific amounts.

All-purpose flour
Cornstarch
Baking soda
Dry Spices – Ground cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom.
Kosher salt
Unsalted butter – At room temperature.
Light brown sugar – You can use dark brown in a pinch, but not white sugar.
Agave – You can also use honey.
Vanilla extract
Eggs – You’ll need two whole eggs and one yolk.
Dark chocolate chips
Semisweet chocolate chips
Pistachios – I like to use salted and roasted pistachios from the market that are already shelled. Then all you have to do is chop them up.
Dried cranberries
Flaky salt – For sprinkling on the cookies just before baking.

A stack of 6 cookies on a wire rack, the top one broken in half

How to Make Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you ready to make these cookies? Here’s how to do it:

Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, mix the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and salt until well combined. Set aside.
Combine butter and sugar. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the room temperature butter and sugar. Mix them vigorously until fluffy and well combined.
Add remaining wet ingredients. Add the agave and vanilla extract into the mixture. Once they’re well combined, add the 2 eggs and 1 yolk. Mix well.
Incorporate wet and dry. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the wet ones. Mix until just combined. Gently fold the remaining dry ingredients into the dough until just combined.
Add the add-ins. Fold in all the chocolate chips, pistachios, and cranberries until they’re evenly distributed in the dough.
Chill it. Cover the bowl with saran wrap. Refrigerate it for 1 hour. When there are 15 minutes left of chilling time, preheat the oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat (affiliate link).
Roll it. Grab 3 tablespoons of dough and roll them into a ball. Repeat this for all the dough. Arrange them on the lined baking sheet, leaving 4-5″ in between each one. Slightly flatten each ball of dough with the palm of your hand, then sprinkle on a bit of flakey sea salt to taste.
Bake. Pop the tray into the oven for 14-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the centers are slightly set. You may have to bake in batches.
Cool. Let the cookies rest on the tray for 20 minutes before moving them to a wire rack (affiliate link) to finish cooling.

Baking Times

The baking time for these cookies will vary according to how much dough you use for each ball. If you want smaller cookies, use 2 tablespoons of cookie dough and bake them for 12-13 minutes. If you want larger cookies, use 3 tablespoons of cookie dough and bake for 14-15 minutes. Note that these cookies will still be soft in the center with golden edges when they are done.

Close up of pistachio chocolate chip cookies cooling on a wire rack

Tips For the Best Pistachio Cookies

Cornstarch makes a difference. I know this is a somewhat unusual ingredient in cookies, but don’t leave it out. This ingredient makes the finished cookies super soft and chewy.
Don’t skip the chill time. The chill time for these cookies is likewise important. The cookie dough needs to chill in the fridge for a least one hour. This lets the cookie dough hydrate completely and makes it easier to roll into balls.
Wet your hands. If you find that the cookie dough is sticking when you start rolling it into balls, wet your hands a bit to prevent sticking.
Flatten the cookies slightly. After you roll the cookie dough balls, flatten them slightly by gently pressing down with the palm of your hand. This helps the cookies spread a bit more.
Don’t overbake. These cookies will still be soft in the center when they are done. Be careful not to overbake them by waiting until the centers are completely firm or you’ll end up with hard cookies. The soft centers will firm up during the cooling process.
Cool. It is important to let these cookies rest for 15 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to finish cooling. If you try and move them too soon they will break.

Variation Ideas

While the cookie dough base should remain the same, you can easily customize these cookies by using different add-ins. Here are some ideas:

Nuts. If you’re not a fan of pistachios, you can use an equal amount of chopped walnuts or almonds. You can also use a mixture of nuts, just make sure the total amount used in the recipe remains the same.
Dried fruit. You can use dried cherries, golden raisins, or regular raisins instead of dried cranberries. Another tasty option is chopped dried apricots. Use a mixture of dried fruits if you like so long as the total amount in the recipe is unchanged.
Chocolate. I used a mixture of dark chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips. If you want more sweetness you could substitute one of these for milk chocolate chips, or use all milk chocolate chips. If you want less sweetness you can sub the semisweet chocolate chips with bittersweet chocolate chips.
Flaky salt. Instead of sea salt you can also use pink Himalayan salt. Not only does it add flavor but it adds a subtle pop of additional color. In a pinch, you could use kosher salt but don’t use regular table salt.

Serving Suggestions

In the morning I love enjoying homemade cookies with a hot cup of coffee or, if I’m feeling ambitious, a “fancy” latte. My honey-vanilla latte recipe goes exceptionally well with these cookies. For afternoon or evening snacks, we love these cookies with a cold glass of milk, a cup of tea, or some moon milk.

How to Store These Chocolate Chip Cookies

Let the cookies cool to room temperature, then store them as follows:

Counter. Place them in an airtight container and store them for 3-4 days.
Fridge. They will keep in the fridge for up to 7 days in an airtight container.
Freezer. Wrap each cookie in saran wrap, then place them in an airtight, freezer-safe container. They will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer. Thaw overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a few hours before enjoying.

Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies