Chocolate Love Potion Cookies

Chocolate Love Potion Cookies

You’ll fall in love with these bewitching double chocolate cookies with pistachios and rose petals. As if the chocolate chips weren’t enough, I topped them with pieces of dark chocolate which melt into heavenly little pools of deliciousness. You may have heard that chocolate is considered to be an aphrodisiac because it contains tryptophan and phenelethylamine. Tryptophen increases the mood booster serotonin in the brain. Phenelethylamine is released by the brain when you fall in love. Pistachios are also considered to be natural aphrodisiacs and these cookies contain plenty of pistachios! The rose petals add a touch of romance to finish off the perfect love potion cookies.

If you’re not a fan of pistachios, feel free to substitute your favorite toasted nuts. If you want to skip the nuts all together, make sure to replace them with another add-in, because the nuts provide structure to the cookies. I recommend dried cherries or white chocolate chips as a nice alternative.

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Chocolate Love Potion Cookies
Double chocolate cookies with chocolate chips and pistachios topped with pools of melted chocolate, chopped pistachios and dried rose petals
Servings
cookies
Ingredients
Servings
cookies
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
  3. In a separate large bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar, with an electric mixer at medium speed, until light and fluffy.
  4. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla in 3 separate additions and beat until incorporated. Beat in the flour mixture just until combined.
  5. Fold in the chocolate chips and pistachios.
  6. Form the dough into 18 2-tablespoon size portions, about 2 ounces (57g) each. Form the portions into 2-inch heart shapes. (They don't have to be perfect, because the cookies are going to spread as they bake.) Place the heart shapes on a tray. Cover and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
  7. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Place 6 heart shapes on each cookie sheet, about 3 inches apart. Top each one with a piece of chocolate bar. I placed my chocolate pieces on the upper left of each cookie. Bake the cookies until the tops look set, about 10-11 minutes. Be careful not to over bake the cookies or they'll be more difficult to shape into hearts.
  8. Remove the cookies from the oven and immediately use a large, metal heart-shaped cookie cutter to shape the hot cookies. Place the cookie cutter onto the cookie sheet over each cookie and slide it up and down a couple of times, then slide it side to side a couple of times. Work quickly before the cookies set. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack. Top the cookies with chopped pistachios and rose petals before the melted chocolate sets.
Recipe Notes

To find culinary rose petals, click here.

To find the cookie cutter I used, click here.

Pistachio Rose Croissants

Filled croissants are gaining more popularity due to social media. Bakeries and coffee shops offer croissants filled with fun and interesting fillings, but they can be pricey and hard to get. Have you ever stood in line at a popular bakery only to discover that the croissant you wanted was sold out? This recipe is a fun and easy way to duplicate a fancy bakery croissant using store bought croissants. This pistachio rose version is elegant and delicious!

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Pistachio Rose Croissants
Croissants brushed with rose syrup, filled with buttery pistachio filling and topped with white chocolate, toasted pistachios and rose petals
Servings
Ingredients
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Start by making the rose syrup. In a small saucepan combine 1/4 cup of the sugar with 1/4 cup of water over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally, just until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and stir in the rose water to taste.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. (180ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  3. In a medium bowl, beat the butter with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and the salt together by hand or with an eclectic mixer, until well combined. Beat in the egg, extracts, pistachio flour and all purpose flour until well combined.
  4. Split the croissants in half with a serrated knife. Place the croissants on the prepared baking sheet, cut side up. Brush the croissants with the rose syrup. Spread the pistachio mixture on the bottom half of each croissant. Place the tops on the croissants.
  5. Bake until the filling is set, about 25-30 minutes. If your croissants start to brown too much, cover them with aluminum foil tents during the last few minutes of baking. Transfer the croissants to a cooling rack.
  6. Melt the white chocolate and oil together in a heat safe pan set over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir gently until smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in food coloring a little at a time until your desired shade is achieved. Drizzle the pink chocolate over the cooled croissants. Top with chopped pistachios and rose petals.
Recipe Notes

*To find rose water, click here.  If you don't like rose flavor, substitute the rose water with 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract.

**To find culinary rose petals, click here.