Cran-Pistachio Cookies

Alright, I recognize it's nearly the end of January, and that means that I'm about 30 days late on posting the new Christmas cookie recipes I made for 2011. But since Christmas is guaranteed to come back around in just under 340 days (did I do that right?), we could say that I'm just really early in posting for next year!


I revisited many of the old favorites (like gumdrops and caramels) that I either make out of request by friends and family or make for myself because, hey, it's the holidays right? But this recipe was a new addition to the list, and with its green dough and red cranberries studded throughout, it will be returning next year (or this year, actually).


Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 (3.4 oz) package Jell-O pistachio instant pudding and pie filling mix
1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup (shelled) roasted, salted pistachios, finely chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries, finely chopped


Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and pudding mix.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Add the eggs and vanilla extract, one at a time, beating after each addition.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, beating until just combined.
6. Stir in the chopped pistachios and cranberries.
7. Drop by the spoonful onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
8. Bake 8-10 minutes or until just baked.
*Note: don't overbake them! When you remove them from the oven, they won't look like they're done, but let them cool and they'll be just right.