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Close-up of gooey Pistachio Sourdough Chocolate chip Cookies with melted chocolate chunks and crushed pistachios, served with milk.

Gooey Pistachio Sourdough Cookies

Becky Rickett
Chewy sourdough cookies with a molten pistachio cream center, nutty browned butter, and melty chocolate chips. A bakery-style treat with an Afterglow twist.
5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 13 minutes
Chill Time (for pistachio filling) – 30 minutes 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Dessert, Afterglow Sweets, Cookies
Cuisine American, Bakery-Style
Servings 8
Calories 240 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
  

  • 8 tbsp pistachio cream + extra for topping (freeze in 1 tbsp scoops for filling)
  • 113 g unsalted butter (½ cup), browned and cooled slightly
  • 100 g light brown sugar (½ cup, packed)
  • 50 g granulated sugar (¼ cup)
  • 45 g sourdough discard  (about 3 tbsp, unfed)
  • 1 egg room temperature
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 160 g all-purpose flour (1 ⅓ cups)
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 45 g pistachios crushed (⅓ cup)
  • flakey sea salt sprinkles for topping

Instructions
 

Prepare pistachio filling

  • Scoop pistachio cream into 1 tbsp balls and freeze until firm (at least 30 minutes).
    Scoops of pistachio cream on a parchment-lined tray, ready to freeze for stuffing into sourdough chocolate chip cookies.

Brown the butter

  • In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Continue cooking, swirling occasionally, until it foams and turns golden with a nutty aroma (5–7 minutes). Transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool slightly.

Chop Pistachios

  • While the butter cools, lightly crush or chop pistachios with a knife, or give them a quick pulse in a small food processor. Set aside.
    Small KitchenAid food processor filled with pistachios, ready to be pulsed for pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookies.

Mix dry ingredients

  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Cream butter & sugars

  • Beat the browned butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth and slightly thickened.

Add egg & vanilla

  • Beat until combined and creamy and a little lighter in color

Mix in discard

  • Add sourdough discard and blend just until incorporated.Add sourdough discard and blend just until incorporated.
    Wooden spoon with pistachios, glass cup with sourdough discard

Bring dough together

  • Stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined.
    Glass bowl of sourdough cookie dough with chocolate chips and chopped pistachios folded in, ready to be shaped into cookies.

Fold in chocolate & pistachios

  • Mix gently to keep the dough tender.
    Glass bowl of sourdough cookie dough with chocolate chips and chopped pistachios folded in, ready to be shaped into cookies.

Wrap filling

  • Scoop about 1 ½ tbsp dough, flatten, place a frozen pistachio cream ball inside, and seal the dough around it. Roll into a ball.
    Close-up of pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookie dough scooped onto a parchment-lined baking tray, with filling inside and ready to bake.

Chill dough

  • Refrigerate filled dough balls at least 2 hours (overnight is best) or freeze for 20–30 minutes.
    Close-up of pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookie dough scooped onto a parchment-lined baking tray, ready to bake.

Bake

  • Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Place dough balls on a parchment-lined sheet, spaced apart. Bake 11–13 minutes until edges are golden and centers are soft. Immediately sprinkle lightly with flaky sea salt.

Cookie scoot (optional)

  • While still hot, place a round cutter or bowl around each cookie and gently swirl to form perfect circles.
    Single pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookie on a baking tray, perfectly round from the cookie scoot technique, topped with pistachios and melted chocolate chunks.

Finish

  • Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let them cool slightly.
    Freshly baked pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookies cooling on a wire rack with melty chocolate chips on top.

The Moment Has Arrived

  • Sprinkle flaky sea salt over the top, scatter with crushed pistachios, and enjoy the gooey chocolate oozing through each bite while still warm.
    Pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookies with gooey chocolate chunks and crushed pistachios, styled with a glass of milk on a rustic wooden table.

Crumb Trail

  • Don’t forget the little details — the pistachio crumbs and chocolate flecks left behind are part of the joy. Scoop them up with your last bite, because nothing goes to waste in a cookie this good. 🍪✨
    Close-up of a pistachio sourdough chocolate chip cookie broken open with melted chocolate oozing out, topped with pistachios, with a glass of milk in the background.

Video

Notes

🌟 Fun Baker’s Note

Warning: these cookies cause instant swoons. One bite of that melty pistachio center and you’ll be hooked. Don’t be surprised if friends start dropping by ‘just to check in’… cookies have a way of bringing people together. 💚🍫🍪

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookieCalories: 240kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 4gFat: 13g
Keyword pistachio sourdough cookies, sourdough discard cookies, gooey pistachio cream cookies, brown butter sourdough cookies, chewy sourdough chcolate chip cookies
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