[Cookie 030] Pistachio Lemon Drops

Hello, readers. Ca va bien? Yes? Great. Can't say the same for myself, considering that I just had an infantile breakdown over some obscenely long curtains I got from IKEA, but that's another story for another day. I shall try to remedy my frustration by telling you about these Pistachio Lemon Drops I made today, but that might not be successful since they didn't turn out too hot. But nevermind that, let's continue.

It's the big 3-0! I can't believe I've made my way through 30 whole recipes since I began this little venture in February. It seems like a lot, but then I realize I still have 145 more to go, and that huge number slaps me right in the face and puts me back in my place (which is the kitchen, evidently). Anyway, I wish I had made a better cookie to celebrate the end of round 2, but what can you do. They aren't all perfect, and that's exactly why I'm doing this.

So, onto why I picked this recipe in the first place. My brother and his girlfriend just moved into a new place, so I wanted to make them a nice house-warming gift, obviously cookies. But I had to pick my recipe carefully, because as unholy and unbelievable as it sounds, my brother does not like chocolate. I know--don't even get me started. So that ruled out about 70% of the recipes (I just made that percentage up, btw), and I eventually came to this recipe, which I had my eye on for a while.

Oddly enough, while many recipes do not call for any butter when egg whites are used, this one only has 1 egg white and a whole cup of packed brown sugar. RED FLAG! The cookies were insanely sweet and sticky, and though they did look like the ones in the book, I just couldn't really stomach them, let alone give them away as a present! Fortunately, my mom grew to like them, but I still had to make a different cookie to give to the new home-renters (see next post, coming soon to your computer). Anyway, I would liken their super-sweet flavor to that of a praline, just a praline with a bunch of pistachios in it. Next time, if I were to make these again, I would add much more lemon juice and less sugar, for sure. If you're a huge pistachio fan, maybe you should give these a shot, because they are also really really strong on the pistachio front.

Oh well, you can't win 'em all. The next cookies I made were fantastic, so stay tuned. In other news, I am getting so pumped up for the Julie & Julia movie coming out soon! Ah!!!! My life!! I'm so ready for Julie & Julia Part Two: Lizzie & Martha, Cookie Edition (pre-production, expected release 2045). I'm even reading Julia Child's memoirs (My Life in France), and I am so in love with her life, oh my god. Oh my god. Okay, enough, you're here for the recipe:

Pistachio Lemon Drops

Makes about 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 large egg white
  
• Pinch coarse salt
  
• 1 cup toasted salted pistachios, finely chopped (about 4 1/2 ounces)
  
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
  
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put egg white and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and mix on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Reduce speed to medium; mix in nuts and sugar, then flour and lemon juice.
   
2. Using a 1 1/4-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.
   

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{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 2/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 3/5
Tastiness: 1.5/5 (Unless you love uber-sweet, uber-salty, uber-cookies)
Attractiveness: 2/5
Is it worth it?: Frankly, no. But if you alter the recipe, it might be really good, so if you're feeling feisty...

{Pairings}
Drink: Water, to calm down your taste buds. Or lemonade, to boost up the lemon flavor that gets stifled.

Song: For No One -- The Beatles
Activity: Going into sugar-induced epileptic shock. (Okay, that's a little harsh, but really now...)