Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups

Spring has officially arrived, and Easter is fast approaching. Yay! So looking forward to the Easter egg hunts that take place in our neighborhood.

My kids have grown up enjoying the playful Easter egg hunts, and each year, they ended their day coming home to me asking for something sweet.

There was always a treat like – Eggless chocolate mousse brownie, vegan brownie sundae cups, or shortbread cookies waiting for them.

But, this year, I wanted to make a stunning yet pastel-colored dessert that screams Easter; that’s how a delightful dessert was conceived – Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups! 

Easter and spring have always been associated with the color green, so to create an Easter-themed dessert, I have made a buttery shortbread cookie base that is wonderfully crisp and is filled with a pistachio-flavored creamy mousse.

If you love pistachio-flavored desserts, these cookie cups are not to be missed! They’re simply divine!

Reasons You’ll ♡ Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups!

This recipe has been tested and tried many times my the kitchen before I think I have THE PERFECT Cookie cups that are —

Fun and easy
Packed with flavor
Perfectly crisp on the edges
Soft and tender center
Irresistible and delicious on their own, and
Kids approved!

In short, these pistachio mousse-filled cookie cups meet every standard that you are looking for in a cookie cup. Plus, they are absolutely irresistible and will make quite a statement at your Easter dinner table. 

The pistachio filling strikes the perfect balance between the cookie cups’ crispiness and the luscious and creamy texture of the mousse.

And when you bite into them, it fills your mouth with a crunchy crust against a creamy mousse. It’s just pure deliciousness!

Ingredient list for Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups

Flour — For the cookie cups, I have used all-purpose flour as it gives great results. However, you can use a combo of wheat flour and all-purpose flour to make the cookies.

Salt — Just a pinch is added to the cookie dough to bring out the flavors.

Butter — Unsalted butter is mixed with the flour before kneading as it creates cookies tender. Furthermore, it adds moisture to our cookie cups. 

Sugar — Powdered sugar is used to sweeten the cookie dough and pistachio mousse.  

Agar-Agar — Agar-agar powder is a potent thickening agent that is naturally vegan/vegetarian. It has gel-like characteristics and is a suitable replacement for gelatin.

Heavy Whipping Cream — the foundation of pistachio mousse. Ensure the cream you use has at least 30% of the fat; otherwise, our mousse will not attain light and fluffy results. 

Cornstarch — This is what will thicken our Rasmalai mousse while retaining its creamy and smooth finish. 

White Chocolate —  is the easiest way of stabilizing whipped cream. 

Color + Essence —  Green color is added to the mousse for much more pronounced spring color. Pistachio essence gives these mousse cookie cups a delicious flavor boost.

Garnishes —  Easter edibles and sprinkles of your choice. 

How to make Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups?

These Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups are a delightful dessert for an Easter celebration. Even though they might look like a lot of work, in actuality, they are super easy to make. We start by making a cookie base.

Prepare cookie base — Combine powdered sugar and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add the flour mixture to the creamed butter. Mix until it forms a soft dough.

Bake the Cookie cups — Divide the dough into 12 balls and mold each ball into a lightly greased cupcake pan cavity. Bake in a preheated oven (325°F) for 18-20 minutes or until lightly golden. 

Create the well in cookie cups — Once out of the oven, take a small bottle and gently press the center down, creating a well in your cookie cups. After pressing the cookies down, bake for another 4 minutes. This way, the center will get cooked.

Let the cookie cups rest — Please do not remove the cups from the cupcake pan cavity while they are hot. Allow them to cool completely. Cookie cups will become firm as they cool. Gently run a knife around the edges to loosen cookie cups from the sides of the tray. Set them aside.

Prepare the mousse — Combine agar-agar with 2 tablespoons of lukewarm water. Whisk and allow it to bloom for 5 minutes — Meanwhile, heat heavy cream in a saucepan over medium-high heat.

Add bloomed agar-agar to cream and allow it to simmer for about 5 minutes (over medium-low heat) until it is completely dissolved. After 5 minutes, take it off the flame. The cream will become slightly thick.

Pour this mixture over chocolate chips and whisk until chocolate is completely melted. Set aside to cool to about room temperature. Keep stirring occasionally. 

Add a few drops of green color and pistachio essence. Whisk it well. Pour the cooled chocolate mixture into whipped cream.
Fold gently until well combined.

Assemble Pistachio Mousse Filled Cookie Cups — Fill a pastry bag with pistachio mousse and pipe the mousse into each cup. Top each cookie cup with your favorite Easter edibles and enjoy.

Recipe Tips and Variations

Salt — I have used unsalted butter for the cookie dough. You can use salted butter too. If using salted butter, omit the salt in the recipe. 

Create the well — The cookies cool quickly, so be sure to create the well or crater in your cookie cups as soon as they are taken out of the oven. Allowing them to rest will result in crumbly cookies.  

Loosen the cups — To remove the cookie cups from the cupcake cavity, gently run the tip of a knife around the edges to loosen them.

Double up —The beauty of these cookie cups is that they will be the center of attention-drawing people like honeybees to flowers. So, if you plan to feed a large gathering, double up on the recipe as these pistachio mousse-filled cookie cups will disappear in a blink. 

Cooking time — Depending on your oven temperature, baking time may vary. Therefore, you may want to start checking at about 16 minutes.

A small portion — If you want a smaller portion of these cookie cups, bake them in a mini cupcake cavity pan.

Store-bought — Save yourself some time as these Pistachio mousse-filled Cookie cups can be prepared with store-bought sugar cookie dough. 

Portable dessert — These cups will make a perfect addition to your spring party. Take the prebaked cookie cups to your next potluck party, and just before serving, pipe the mousse into each cup. Your guests will be impressed with your creativity. 

Can I make these cookie cups in advance?

Absolutely, they are the perfect make-ahead dessert. These cookie cups can be made a couple of days in advance and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

Likewise, pistachio mousse can be prepared a day in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

Just before serving, arrange the cookie cups on a platter, pipe the pistachio mousse into the cookie cups, garnish with Easter sprinkles, and serve. 

 A small note — These cookie cups taste amazing the moment they come out of the oven, so abstain from eating them. Now, who can resist these cute and adorable cookie cups? At least not me. I have already devoured a couple of them. 😉

What other fillings can I use?

The pre-baked cookie cups are a blank canvas ready to be filled with almost any filling. Some test options are – 

• Strawberry mousse
• Chocolate mousse
• Pumpkin mousse
• Whipped cream and fresh berries – the BEST. 

Let Me Know What You Think!

These mousse-filled cookie cups make for an easy dessert, and for those of you who have never tried making a cookie cup, do give them a try, and I am sure no one will be able to resist them – they’re so addicting!

Should you make Pistachio Mousse-filled Cookie Cups or any variation of it, please let me know your thoughts by sharing your comment below. 

And don’t forget to share it with your family and friends.

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