Strawberry Matcha Cookies with Pistachio Chips

 

I love finding new ingredients at the supermarket. 

Not even joking when I travel overseas one of my favourite things to do is walk through the grocery stores. Like forget the art galleries, I'm checking out the baking aisles.

The other day I found some super cool Pistachio Gems at the supermarket and I was in the middle of making a strawberry matcha cheesecake and had all those ingredients out ready to go so it made perfect sense to make a cookie version and add in the pistachio chips.

I’ve tweaked the recipe 8 times and I think I’ve come up with the perfect soft cookie version.

While I was testing the cookies I also tested a few different versions of how to shape them for the best results to get a thicker cookie. I’ve got some interesting findings and I’ve typed up the results like the cookie geek I am! I’ll be sharing those results and pictures in next week’s post.

If you find it easier to watch someone make a recipe, I’ve also made a video that shows you how to make the cookies CLICK HERE to see it. There’s even  a sneak peek on some of the shaping techniques I used.

I also show a few different ways to fill the cookies and what they look like when cut open in the video so it’s definitely worth a watch!

I also made my strawberry filling from scratch, but in the recipe I’m suggesting using jam due to the amount of time required to reduce fresh strawberries down. It did taste pretty amazing though and  I want to trial a version from frozen berries to make it a more affordable all year option.

A final note the cookies in the photos are made with plain/all purpose flour and in the end I substituted some of for cornflour/cornstarch for a softer more cakey cookie. Doing this is the same as using cake flour if you have it on hand.

The recipe for the cookies is typed out below. Happy Baking

XX 

Linda

Strawberry Matcha Cookies with Pistachio Chips 

Matcha and pistachio cookies (makes 12 regular size cookies or 6 larger cookies).

114g (4oz) Unsalted butter room temperature
55g (1 7/8oz) Caster Sugar 
110g (3 7/8oz) Brown Sugar 
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
240g (8 1/2oz) Plain (all purpose) flour 
1Tbsp Cornflour (cornstarch) 
8g (1/4oz) Matcha
1/2 tsp baking powder 
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup pistachio chips (use white chocolate chips if you can't get pistachio chips)

1/2 cup strawberry jam (or homemade strawberry filling)

Preheat oven to 180C (356F)

Sift together the flour, cornflour, matcha, bicarbonate soda, baking powder and salt.

In a separate bowl (I used a stand mixer) cream together butter and both sugars for a few minutes until light and fluffy.

Add egg yolks and vanilla and mix at medium low speed until combined.

At low speed mix in the sifted flour mixture until just combined, then if you are using them add the pistachio baking chips (you can leave them out or use white chocolate chips or dried cranberries instead).

Shape into 12 regular cookies (53g or 1 7/8oz) or 6 large cookies (106g or 3 3/4oz).

Bake at 180C (356F) for 10-12 minutes for regular size cookies or 16-18minutes for large cookies. The cookies will be golden. If you like your cookies less baked/golden turn the temperature down to 160C (320F).

Once baked remove from oven, leave on tray and fill with strawberry jam. I like to pipe mine in the center which is best done while the cookie is still soft.

Allow cookies to cool on tray for at least 30 minutes.

There is a reason one is not filled these are test versions 😊

💕

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2026. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and ads may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Linda Mccubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).

Spectacular Spooky Halloween Fail Chocolate Basque Cheesecake without Jelly Brains

 

With Halloween almost upon us I needed something fast to whip up. I just don't have as much time to bake as I used to.

And this is where my story turns bad and regret sets in. (See the video of it happening here the decorating at the end is where it all goes bad)

I tried to make a jelly brain Basque cheesecake with no planning or buying what I needed. Actually not quite true, I did have something I'd planned to buy but they were sold out and I found an old brain ice mold and thought, that'll do.

But it in fact did not do.

My decorated cake was a spectacular Halloween fail, which was quite humbling as I'm usually pretty successful.

But it made me think about a lot of stuff that has been happening since I've been doing this blog reboot after being away for a while.

Everywhere I look, there's another perfectly styled cake, an impossibly beautiful dessert or a video showing something that looks so easy to recreate.

I sometimes look at recipes online and wonder whether the finished photos or videos actually represent what you'd get if you followed the recipe at home.

And if we don't realise that it makes us feel bad about ourselves. 

With AI-generated images and videos becoming increasingly convincing, it's getting harder to know what we're really looking at.

The worst part is that this kind of content can receive millions of views, thousands of likes and endless comments. Meanwhile, those of us actually making things in our kitchens can end up wondering why our results don't look quite so perfect.

I wonder, when did fake perfection become something we celebrate more than reality?

Anyway the cake itself did turn out quite lovely. It is an extra chocolatey Basque cheesecake with a rich, velvety texture and tart raspberry coulis to balance all that chocolate.

Plus I learned something, or maybe remembered something is more accurate. Most things in life have a direct correlation to the effort you put in and if you rush something you won't always get the result you're hoping for.

I also made a YouTube video (HERE) which I talk through some of the things that social media videos do with a few suggestions on what you should do instead.

If you take that away from this post it's probably more worthwhile that another Basque cheesecake recipe.

If you don't have a mini bar tin you can make a 6"round version by following my regular Chocolate Basque Cheesecake HERE and replacing the cocoa with 15grams of Black Cocoa.

Happy Baking and remember keep it real!

XX

Linda 

Chocolate Basque Cheesecake - makes a 5" x 3.5" rectangle cheesecake which will make 4-6 snack serves. I like to serve mine with raspberry coulis which is a lovely contrast to the velvety chocolate cheesecake. I use a good quality chocolate like Callebaut. Cheesecake slices can frozen wrapped individually in plastic wrap and thawed in the fridge.

• 275g (9 3/4oz) cream cheese at room temperature
• 125g (4 3/8 oz) dark chocolate melted
• 60g (2 1/8 oz) caster/ superfine sugar (use regular granulated sugar if that's all you have)
• 10g black cocoa sifted
• 2 eggs room temperature
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 140g (5oz) cream (dollop cream) (heavy cream) split into roughly 40g ( 1 1/2oz) and 100g (3 1/2oz)
• good pinch salt

To decorate (optional)

• Raspberry Coulis (recipe below)
• Berries and flowers (optional)

Line a 5" x 3.5"  inch wide by 3 inch high, rectangle baking tin with baking paper.

Place cooking rack into middle of oven and preheat to 200 C Fan forced (390F).

Melt the chocolate and 40g (1 1/2oz) cream in a microwave safe dish. I melted mine for 1 min at full strength waited a minute, stirred and then another 30 seconds. Leave for a minute between heating and mix to see if melted and if not heat for another 30 second burst. Set aside until needed.

Sift together the caster sugar and cocoa to ensure there are no lumps.

Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature so the mixture will be silky smooth. Place cream cheese into mixer bowl and mix at low speed until smooth and creamy. You do not want any lumps at this stage and also we are not trying to incorporate extra air or volume. The room temperature ingredients and slow mixing are key steps. You can use a stick blender (emulsifier) if you like.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl add the caster sugar and cocoa and mix at slow speed. Add the eggs one at a time and vanilla and mix until well combined. Continue to scrape down the sides of the bowl until the mixture is completely combined and smooth.

Add the melted dark chocolate and fold in with a spatula, there should be no lumps and no streaks when you are finished.

Add the cream and salt and mix well.

Pour mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 12 mins, increase temperature to 230C (450F) and cook for a further 7 mins. 

Put cheesecake into fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Prior to serving remove from tin and allow to sit at room temperature for 20 mins. If your cheesecake is stuck and you can't get it to release, it's just some of the fats set hard. Run a plastic spatula around the edge between the paper and tin and if it still won't come out pop the base into hot water for a second being careful not to splash the cake and it should easily slide out.

Raspberry Coulis - I make this a lot when serving cheesecake at home and I usually do it without measurements. If it's just me and immediate family I don't even add sugar sometimes. It's a simple elegantly classic way to elevate most desserts perfectly.

• 200 g (7 oz) frozen or fresh raspberries
• 25g icing (powdered) sugar - use regular sugar if that's all you have

Mix together berries and sugar in a microwave safe bowl and heat in microwave for 1 to 2 minutes, blend and sieve. 

👻

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2026. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and ads may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Linda Mccubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).

How to decorate a beautiful Pistachio Cheesecake plus easy recipe

Back when decorated cookies were my thing I went through an obsession with square cookies.

So my latest passion for rectangle cakes isn’t completely out of the box.

I've got a whole series of recipes I've developed and made from scratch here in my kitchen and let me tell you they are insanely pretty and when you get the consistency just right on these cheesecakes they are creamy, dreamy perfection.

Plus my trademark 💕 they are sooo easy.

Post 1 of 20 on my botanical bar cakes series is a creamy pistachio cheesecake decorated with white chocolate passionfruit ganache (RECIPE HERE), raspberries, edible flowers from my kitchen garden and passionfruit and raspberry gel.

The pistachio Basque cheesecake receipe has been one of my most popular recipes on the blog. I usually make it as a small 6" round version (Click HERE for 6 “ version) but I've updated it here to serve a crowd.

And I just need to put it out there, cheesecake served as a bar is the best as there is more of the delicious rich velvety centre. 

After baking simply decorate with a mixture of berries and edible (and pesticide free) flowers for the prettiest and most delicious botanical bar cake ever.

If you’d like to watch me make and decorate the cheesecake I’ve made a quick video you can watch on YouTube (CLICK HERE).

If you don't have a 10" X 4" bar cake tin you can easily use a 7" round without changing the measurements. 

Or pop over to my original receipt which makes a petite 6” round version.

My number one tip when making this cheesecake is to make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature which is the key to a smooth lump free batter.

Happy Baking

XX

Linda M

Pistachio Basque Cheesecake - makes a 10" X 4" rectangle/bar cheesecake which will serve 8-10 generously. Cheesecake slices frozen wrapped individually in plastic wrap for 3 months,just thaw in the fridge when your ready to eat.

640g (1 pound 6 5/8oz) cream cheese at room temperature

385g  (13 5/8oz) pistachio cream

55g (2 oz) caster/ superfine sugar (use regular granulated sugar if that's all you have)

4 XL eggs room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

315g (11 1/8 oz) thickened cream (dollop cream) (heavy cream)

1/4 tsp salt

If you are going to decorate like mine also:

Raspberries or another berry of your choise

Edible flowers (or sugar flowers)

Passion fruit Cheesecake ganache (RECIPE HERE)

Raspberry gel (or jam/jelly)

Passion fruit gel (or jam/jelly)

Line a 10 inch by 4 inch rectangle baking tin with baking paper. 

Place cooking rack into middle of oven and preheat to 200 C Fan forced (400F).

Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature so the mixture will be silky smooth. Place into mixer bowl and mix at low speed until smooth and creamy. You do not want any lumps at this stage and also we are not trying to incorporate extra air or volume. Sometimes I use a stick mixer. The room temperature ingredients and slow mixing are key steps. 

(Note hand mixing with a spatula is achievable, make sure all lumps are gone)

Scrap down the sides of the bowl add the caster sugar and mix at slow speed. Add the eggs one at a time and vanilla and mix,  continuing to scrap down the sides of the bowl until the mixture is completely combined and smooth.

Warm the pistachio spread for a few seconds in the microwave until it’s easy to mix and fold into the cheesecake mixture with a spatula, there should be no lumps and no streaks when you are finished.

Add the cream and salt and mix until combines and streak free.

Pour mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 30 mins, increase temperature to 220C (430F) and cook for a further 5 mins. That means just leave the cheeescake in the oven for a further 5 minutes, don’t wait for the oven to heat up and then leave for an extra 5 minutes as the cheesecake will  overcook.

Remove cheesecake from oven immediately, allow to cool for a few minutes, cover with cling wrap and then pop into fridge overnight to chill still in the baking tin.

Once chilled remove from tin and remove the baking paper.

You can serve it as is, with a drizzle (or more) of extra pistachio cream or decorate it like in the pictures.

See my YouTube video which shows exactly how I decorated the cake shown in these pictures.

For a creamy centre allow the cheesecake to come to room temperature. Alternatively you can slice while still cool and microwave each slice separately for 10 seconds for a creamy centre.

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2026. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Linda Mccubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).