End-Of-Summer Sweet Treats: Orange Pistachio Cookies

Yesterday, my fiance and I ventured out for a delicious adventure to the farmer's market. Between the gorgeous California morning sunshine and the brightly colored fruits and vegetables, it was the perfect way to celebrate the last few weeks of summer. Visiting the market at this time of year is always exciting, because it's peak season for local farmers. Beyond the usual stands with beautiful dark green kale, graceful leeks, and fragrant herbs, you can enjoy the summer-specific sweet corn, luscious peaches, and succulent strawberries. All of these natural goodies got my mind reeling, and my creative juices flowing.



The first treat born from this newfound creativity occurred just this morning, while I was still at work with nothing to do. What a perfect time to get baking! So I stretched my imagination and came up with these little beauties: Orange Pistachio Cookies.



These are delightful cookies, just bursting with orange fragrance. The sugar coating adds a sweet crunch while the inside remains soft and almost cake-like. Chopped pistachios add a touch of texture, and a perfect complimentary flavor for the orange. I made these using applesauce as an egg replacer, as well, which was new for me. I think it performed just perfectly, and it didn't add any unwanted apple flavor.



What a fun experiment! I'm really happy with the results. So happy, in fact, that I added them as an item on my Etsy shop. Check them out here.

Summer is a great time to taste some delicious local fruits and vegetables, so if you haven't visited a farmers' market yet, I highly encourage you to do so! As you can see, it can produce some excellent results. Stay tuned this week for another farmers' market-inspired treat!