Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies (Cashew Pistachio Cookies)

4.50 from 2 votes

Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies are popular tea-time cookies from India!

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These Kaju Pista Cookies are hugely popular in India. They are eggless and made with pistachios, cashews and flavored with cardamom powder. They are so good with a cup of chai and also perfect for giving as gift!

Kaju Pista Cookies

I am sure everyone must be so busy with their holiday shopping right now. Doesn’t it get a little crazy during this time of the year? I actually don’t like going to malls during the holidays, first of all parking is a huge problem and even if you are lucky enough to find a spot, the lines at all the stores are huge. My biggest problem is with the line if you want to try some clothes on. Like that line in front of the trial room is huge and I really want to avoid it at all costs. Then the lines at checkouts are also huge! I think it’s a good idea to do some shopping well in advance but if you are like me [read:lazy] then obviously you will do it at the peak time, when everyone’s doing it and then get crazy with the whole madness!

If you tired of the whole shopping madness, then I suggest you bake because baking makes everything better. Isn’t it? There’s nothing better than a dipping a crispy homemade cookie into your chai. That’s exactly how I want to start my day, everyday. If you share my sentiments, then I have the most perfect cookie recipe for you today – these kaju pista cookies [ Kaju= cashew and Pista= pistchios in Hindi] are eggless, crispy and flavored with cardamom and kewra to make them perfect chai-time cookie. The addition of custard powder gives them a wonderful taste and aroma.

Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies

Coming back to my kaju pista cookies or cashew pistachio cookie recipe. This is super simple to make, you just need to mix everything together till it forms a dough and then wrap in a cling and refrigerate for an 1-2 hours. Once the dough is chilled, cut it into pieces and bake till crisp! The cookies get lots of flavors from the cardamom powder, custard powder and kewra essence. I know kewra essence is not common in this part of the world but it’s so commonly used in desserts and beverages in India and South Asia. The extract is distilled from pandanus flowers and smells wonderful. If you can’t find it then you can skip it but it gives the cookies a very nice flavor.

Kaju Pista Biscuits

Method

In a bowl sift together flour, custard powder and salt. Set aside.

Using your stand or hand mixer, beat the butter and powdered sugar till light and fluffy, around 2-3 minutes.

Add vanilla extract, kewra essence, cardamom powder and mix till well combined.

Kaju Pista Cookies Recipe-Step-1

Now add the flour mix and chopped nuts.

Mix to form a dough. Add milk, 1 tablespoon at a time if the dough is not coming together.

Kaju Pista Cookies Recipe-Step-2

Divide the dough into 2 equal halves. Shape each part into a log and then wrap with a cling. Refrigerate the logs for 1-2 hours.

Once the dough has chilled, slice the logs into cookies and place on a baking tray. Bake the cookies at 350 F degrees for 16-17 minutes. The cookies will continue to crisp as they cool down.

Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies

* The prep time includes the chilling time for 1 hour. The actual prep time is only 10 minutes.

Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies (Cashew Pistachio Cookies)

4.50 from 2 votes
Prep: 1 hour 10 minutes
Cook: 16 minutes
Total: 1 hour 26 minutes
Servings: 3 dozen cookies
Eggless Kaju Pista Cookies are popular tea-time cookies from India!

Ingredients 

  • 1.5 cups all purpose flour
  • 2.5 tablespoons vanilla custard powder [i use the one we get at indian stores any brand would do]
  • pinch of salt
  • ½ cup butter unsalted [1 stick]
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
  • ¼ teaspoon kewra essence
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup chopped nuts cashews & pistachios and some more to garnish on top
  • 1-2 tablespoons milk as required
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Instructions 

  • In a bowl sift together flour, custard powder and salt. Set aside.
  • Using your stand or hand mixer, beat the butter and powdered sugar till light and fluffy, around 2-3 minutes.
  • Add vanilla extract, kewra essence, cardamom powder and mix till well combined.
  • Now add the flour mix and chopped nuts.
  • Mix to form a dough. Add milk, 1 tablespoon at a time if the dough is not coming together.
  • Divide the dough into 2 equal halves. Shape each part into a log and then wrap with a cling. Refrigerate the logs for 1-2 hours.
  • Once the dough has chilled, slice the logs into cookies and place on a baking tray. Sprinkle some more chopped cashews and pistachios on top.
  • Bake the cookies at 350 F degrees for 16-17 minutes. The cookies will continue to crisp as they cool down.

Nutrition

Calories: 761kcal, Carbohydrates: 81g, Protein: 11g, Fat: 45g, Saturated Fat: 21g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g, Monounsaturated Fat: 10g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 114mg, Sodium: 309mg, Potassium: 241mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 21g, Vitamin A: 981IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 73mg, Iron: 4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Cookies
Cuisine: Indian
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Hi, I’m Manali!

Bringing you easy, delicious vegetarian & vegan recipes! Eating veggies can be fun, you just need to get creative in the kitchen with the right set of ingredients!


4.50 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

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27 Comments

    1. you cannot, almond flour works very differently in baking and I have not tested this recipe with almond flour

  1. Hi Manali,

    Although the biscuits came out really nice but I feel I cooked them a bit more than required because I felt they were soft initially so I cooked for 5-7 more minutes. Do they become crispy even if they are soft when hot?

    1. I will measure when I do the recipe again, but 1 cup flour = 130 grams, so 1.5 grams here will be 195 grams of flour.

    1. No, oil is liquid, that will change the ratio of dry to wet ingredients in the recipe. Also butter gives so much flavor to the cookies. You can try ghee but not oil.

  2. Hi…., when I try to cut the cookies after taking the them out of the refrigerator they crumble and crack can you please tell me why this is happening ?

    1. Hmm Ritu, you might need to add little more liquid (milk) in the dough if it isn’t coming together and then try refrigerating overnight! It should work!