Baker Bleu The Book by Mike Russell is a cookbook of sorts. At least, it has 70-plus delicious, inventive recipes for anyone who wants to emulate the best bread and Roman-style sourdough pizza bases in Melbourne.

And those who are sandwich fiends, or who aspire to resourcefulness with leftover bread, or use croissant dough to make simple filled pastries at home (and prudently leave the whole croissant palaver to the experts). Or just crave the bakery’s now cultish vegan challah.

Here’s a yummy recipe to try …

Pistachio, white chocolate and cherry cookies

Makes 20

We love the pistachios that we get from Eric Wright at Go Just Nuts, grown on a farm in sunny Mildura, hundreds of kilometres north of Melbourne. He brines his pistachios so they’re super crunchy.

These cookies show them off fabulously.

INGREDIENTS

220 g (7 ¾ oz) plain (all-purpose) flour

80 g (2 ¾ oz) rye flour

5 g (⅛ oz) baking powder

8 g (¼ oz) bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

8 g (¼ oz) fine salt

135 g (4 ¾ oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature

105 g (3 ¾ oz) pistachio paste (see note)

265 g (9 ½ oz) soft brown sugar

65 g (2 ½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

65 g (2 ½ oz) eggs (about 1½)

40 g (1 ½ oz) egg yolks (from about 2½ eggs)

95 g (3 ¼ oz) white chocolate, roughly chopped

95 g (3 ¼ oz) dried cherries, roughly chopped

195 g (7 oz) shelled unsalted pistachio nuts, roughly chopped

NOTE

Pistachio paste should be 100 per cent pure pistachio butter. Read the ingredients list carefully. It can be bought from health food shops or specialist baking shops.

1. Place the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl and combine with a whisk. Set aside.
2. Place the butter, pistachio paste, brown sugar and caster sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream the ingredients on medium speed for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
3. Switch to low speed and add the whole eggs and yolks in two batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl and making sure the first batch is fully incorporated before adding the next. Mix until all the egg is incorporated.
4. Add the bowl of dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
5. Add the white chocolate, cherries and 95 g (3 ¼ oz) of the pistachios and mix briefly until evenly distributed.
6. Use a spoon or quarter-cup to scoop out pieces of the cookie dough approximately 60 g (2¼ oz) in weight. Roll each piece into a ball, then press to flatten into discs.
7. Place the discs on baking trays or in a proofing tray lined with baking paper and cover with a tea towel or a lid, then refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight to rest.
8. Half an hour before baking, heat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and spread the remaining 100 g (3½ oz) of chopped pistachios onto a plate or baking sheet.
9. Remove the cookies from the fridge 10 minutes before baking. Press one side of each cookie into the chopped pistachios, then place the cookies onto a baking tray lined with baking paper (you may need a few trays) about 5 cm (2 inches) apart, with the nuts facing up.
10. Bake for 7 minutes, at which point remove the trays from the oven and gently tap them on a bench before placing them back in the oven for a final 3 minutes or so until the cookies are browned around the edges. (The tapping will give you nice flat cookies with a chewy texture.)
11. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the trays for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
12. Cookies will keep in a sealed container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

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