Chocolate Pistachio Kunafa Cookies

One of the best things you will ever have! This Chocolate Pistachio Kunafa cookies has the perfect combination of a rich and decadent cookie filled with a generous amount of Pistachio Kunafa filling, oozing out every bite.

It’s truly the most delicious thing. If you’re already a fan of the Viral Dubai Chocolate, you need to try these cookies too!

If you haven’t heard about the famous Dubai Chocolate Bar, I’ll be seriously surprised. However, just to give you guys a quick insight, it was a trend started by FIX Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai. The famous FIX Chocolate Bar, labelled ‘can’t get knafeh of it’ is a milk chocolate bar filled with a pistachio kunafa filling. It quickly went viral on social media for it’s unique concept and tempting appeal.

The past month I went to Langkawi, Malaysia and I found myself among a group of travelers from around the world on a Mangrove Tour. It was quite a great experience interacting with people with different worldviews while we were all in the middle of the Andaman sea. The minute I mentioned that I am traveling from Dubai, they talked about Dubai Chocolate and we ended up having a wholesome conversation about it.

It’s really interesting how popularized the Pistachio Kunafa Chocolate Bar has become around the world in a very short time span.

This chocolate bar was my inspiration behind the Pistachio Kunafa Brownies which I posted a couple of months back and it definitely grabbed a lot of attention. I knew I wanted to create a cookie version as well. So, finally I am posting the recipe of this ultra-decadent Pistachio Kunafa Chocolate cookies.

Why should you make these cookies?

1. It tastes like chocolate and pistachio heaven with just the right combination of flavour and textures.
2. This recipe uses a really decadent Death by Chocolate Cookie dough as the base, which is made using Browned butter and has the softest, gooiest texture. Add in Pistachio Kunafa in there and it is the best thing ever!
3. These are not your regular supermarket cookies, every bite feels like a special dessert.
4. It’s really easy to make and that element of surprise when the Pistachio Kunafa filling oozes out of the cookie is sure to impress your friends.

What are the ingredients used for making Pistachio Kunafa Chocolate Cookies?

Ingredients needed for Pistachio Kunafa Filling

• Kunafa dough– Also called as Kataifi pastry or shredded phyllo. These are not the same as Vermicelli but if you can’t find Kunafa dough in your city, you can use fine vermicelli as a substitute.
• Pistachio Spread– I used a creamy, sweetened pistachio spread. You can make your own too using blanched, peeled pistachios blended into a Pistachio butter and sweetened according to your taste.
• Tahini– It is basically a ground sesame paste used in many middle-eastern dishes. I have kept it optional in this recipe but I highly recommend it as it enhances the flavour and may help balance the sweetness of the pistachio butter.
• Butter or Ghee– this is used for roasting your kunafa dough.

Ingredients you will need for the Double Chocolate Cookies

• Butter- High quality butter is essential for getting richer and more flavourful cookies in general. Using a butter with higher milk fat percentage will ensure you get a good cookie structure and shape. Avoid margarine.
• Instant Coffee Powder- It is said that a little hint of espresso deepens or amplifies the chocolate flavour of any dessert or baked good. While I am no expert, I like the end result with it so I think it’s worth that little touch.
• Brown Sugar– As opposed to white sugar, brown sugar gives a much softer cookie that holds a little extra moisture. Perfect to get that gooey cookie texture.
• Vanilla extract– Brings out the flavour!
• Egg– Essential in order to get the right texture. Use a room temperature egg for best results.
• Cocoa Powder– High quality cocoa powder is absolutely key when you are making these rich, chocolate cookies. Using low quality ones will not give you the same result.
• All-purpose flour- While there are alternatives, All-purpose flour is supposedly the best and easily available flour for these cookies.
• Baking soda– Our main leavening agent that will help us get that fluffy and soft cookie.
• Salt– Helps balance the flavours.
• Chocolate chunks– Use either semi-sweet or milk chocolate chunks.

Step by Step process of making Pistachio Kunafa Cookies

Step 1: Make Pistachio Kunafa Filling

Roast Kunafa/Kataifi dough with butter or ghee until golden brown. Stir with Pistachio spread and Tahini.

Step 2: Make balls with the Pistachio Kunafa Filling

Place Pistachio Kunafa filling in the fridge to slightly solidify until you are able to make balls out of it. Divide filling into 10-12 equal balls. Keep in the freezer for 15mins.

Step 3: Prepare Cookie dough and cover Pistachio Balls with it

Follow the steps on the recipe card below to create the cookie dough and then cover the pistachio kunafa balls with it. Add the chocolate chunks on top.

Step 4: Bake and Enjoy

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 10 minutes on the lower-middle rack. Let it cool completely after it is done. Dig in and enjoy!

How can I store leftover Pistachio Kunafa Cookies?

These Pistachio kunafa chocolate cookies can be kept covered at room temperature for up to 3 days and in the fridge for about a week. I recommend re-heating the cookie in a microwave before you indulge.

You can also freeze both baked and unbaked cookies without any worries inside air-tight, plastic containers or ziploc bags. If freezing baked cookies, make sure it cools completely before freezing and wrap individually with cling to avoid it sticking together.

More dessert recipe ideas:

Pistachio Kunafa Brownie
Gulab Jamun in Kunafa Nests
Salted Chocolate Brownie Cookies
Classic Cheese Kunafa
Copy-cat B.Laban Koshary

RECIPE for Pistachio Kunafa Cookies:

Pistachio Kunafa Chocolate Cookies

Recipe by Aysha SaihaCourse: DessertDifficulty: Easy

Yields

10-12

cookies

Prep time

25

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

Total time

45

minutes

Ingredients

• For the Pistachio Kunafa Filling

• 1 cup (90gm) kunafa pastry

• 1 Tbsp butter or ghee, for roasting kunafa dough

• 3/4 cup (200gm) pistachio spread

• 2 Tbsp Tahini (optional)

• For the Cookie Dough

• 114gm unsalted butter

• 1 teaspoon espresso/ instant coffee powder

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 egg, room temperature

• 1/3 cup cocoa powder

• 1 cup all purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup milk or semi-sweet, chocolate chunks

Directions

• Make the Pistachio Kunafa Filling and make balls out of it
• Shred the Kunafa pastry either in a food processor or using a pair of scissors into approximately 1-2cms in length. In a large frying pan, add in butter or ghee and once it is melted, add in the shredded kunafa. Keep stirring until it gets a beautifully roasted golden-brown colour. Remove from heat, let it cool and then transfer to a mixing bowl.
• Add the pistachio spread and Tahini into the bowl with kunafa. Stir well using a large spoon or spatula and then refrigerate for 10 minutes for it to slightly solidify.
• Then, you can divide the pistachio kunafa filling into 10-12 equal sized balls, place them on a tray lined with parchment paper. I make the balls using my hands which can be a little messy, you can use a small cookie scooper for this step as well. Freeze the balls for atleast 15mins or until you’re ready with the cookie dough.
• Prepare the rich, brown butter Cookie Dough
• In a small heavy bottomed saucepan, add in your butter on medium heat. Using a spatula or a whisk, stir constantly until the butter is melted, starts to foam and eventually turns into a light golden brown colour. Immediately, remove from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.
• Let the browned butter cool for around 10mins and then add in espresso powder. Follow by mixing in brown sugar, whisk until the sugar dissolves well into the butter and add vanilla extract and egg. Whisk well for a minute or two.
• Sift in cocoa powder, flour, baking soda and salt. Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet batter until no streaks of flour remain.
• Make the Cookie balls. Bake and serve!
• Remove the Pistachio Kunafa balls from the freezer. Cover the balls with a layer of cookie dough, ensuring the filling is not visible from the outside and it is evenly covered. Continue until all the Pistachio Kunafa balls are covered with cookie dough, without any leftovers. Top it up with chocolate chunks.
• Bake in a pre-heated 180°C (350°F) oven for about 10 minutes on the lower-middle rack. These cookies are going to be quite soft just out of the oven so give it time to cool properly for atleast 20-25mins before you dive in. For an enhanced look, drizzle up melted pistachio spread, serve and enjoy!

Notes

• The measurements of pistachio spread and Kunafa is an approximate I used. You can adjust it according to your preference and how creamy or crunchy you want it.