Dubai Chocolate Cookies Worth the Hype

It took me long enough, but I have finally jumped on the Dubai chocolate trend bandwagon! I am sure you have heard about this by now, but if not: Dubai chocolate is a viral confection famous for its rich, multi-sensory texture and Middle Eastern-inspired flavors. It pairs a smooth chocolate shell with a decadent filling made of toasted kataifi (shredded phyllo pastry), rich pistachio cream, and tahini, creating a highly addictive contrast of crunchy and creamy in every bite.

Its massive appeal comes down to a few key elements: the signature "crunch" is unlike standard candy bars since Dubai chocolate features toasted kataifi. When roasted in butter, these shredded pastry threads create a satisfying, crisp sound and feel. The crunch is then balanced with a creamy, nutty pistachio paste and a hint of tahini, moving it from a simple candy to an elevated, pastry-like dessert.

It was originally created in 2021 by Fix Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai, and the treat exploded on platforms like TikTok and Instagram in 2024. The visual of the thick, colorful bars snapping open to reveal a vibrant, stringy green filling turned it into an international obsession. Because of their scarcity and high-quality ingredients, original bars are super expensive and spawned a wave of DIY recipes by home cooks and copycats from major brands globally.

I was first introduced to pistachio cream when I went to Sicily last year for our Onward Travel culinary tour. This stuff is like green gold! Basically, it is like Nutella but way better. Funny story: we got to tour a wonderful pistachio farm while in Sicily and my husband and I bought a jar of pistachio cream to take home with us and unfortunately, I didn’t realize that it was still in my bag and it got confiscated!! Luckily, we found some in the airport, which was good but it just wasn’t the same. For the recipe below, this is the kind we used for the filling.

It was nice and thick so it really held up in the center of the cookie. Other versions may have different consistencies.

This is the kataifi we used. It comes pre-toasted which makes it easier to use. If you get other versions I highly recommend toasting it in browned butter for an even nuttier flavor.

This past holiday season at The Chopping Block, we hosted our annual employee cookie exchange/contest. This Dubai chocolate cookie was the clear winner! We loved them so much that we decided to make them for the Lincoln Square Great Bake Walk event where they were also a big hit along side our strawberry financiers.

Dubai Chocolate Cookies

Yield: 12 large cookies

Prep time: 30 minutes

Bake time: 15 minutes

For the filling:

2/3 cup (195 g) pistachio cream

2/3 cup (52 g) toasted kataifi

For the cookie dough:

1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter cut into pieces

1/4 cup (25 g) natural cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar

1/3 cup (67 g) light brown sugar , firmly packed

1 large egg, room temperature

3/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups (198 g) cake flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon table salt

For the topping:

1/3 cup (70 g) semisweet chocolate, melted, for drizzling

2 Tablespoons roasted, salted pistachios, for topping

For the filling:

1. Stir together pistachio cream and kataifi until well-combined.

2. Scoop by 1 Tablespoon-sized scoop (17g) onto a small baking sheet lined with wax paper.

3. Transfer to freezer to freeze and solidify while you prepare the cookie dough.

For the cookie dough:

1. Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. Melt butter in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Add cocoa powder and oil and stir well, let it rest until it no longer feels warm to the touch before proceeding.

3. Once butter mixture is cooled, add sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract and stir well.


4. In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

5. Once well-combined, gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, stirring until completely combined.


To assemble:

1.  Check your filling in the freezer and make sure that it’s firm and easy to pick up. If it is, proceed.

2. Portion the cookie dough using a 1/4  cup scoop. Roll into a smooth ball and use your thumb to form an indent in the center of the dough.

3. Remove a ball of filling from the freezer and nestle into the center of the dough and wrap the dough around it to center it.

4. Place cookie dough balls on prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 2” apart. Transfer to center rack of 350F preheated oven and bake for 10-15 minutes.

5. Remove from oven and if cookies haven’t flattened, immediately use the clean bottom of a large measuring cup to gently flatten each cookie. Allow cookies to cool completely on baking sheet before removing and enjoying (they’re very fragile when warm and may fall apart if moved too soon!).

6. Once cooled, drizzle with melted chocolate and top with crushed pistachios. Allow chocolate to harden before serving.

I ended up having extra filling mixed together after making all of the cookies, so I decided to make some Dubai bon bons! This is my interpretation of a mini Dubai chocolate bar.

1. I melted some semi sweet chocolate with coconut oil.

2.  I scooped my katafi and pistachio cream filling and froze it. Just like above.

3. Then I dipped the scooped filling into the chocolate.

4. Make sure to tap off the excess with a fork.

5. Place on a sheet tray to harden. You can also double dip after the chocolate has set to get an extra thick shell. They can live in the fridge or the freezer for weeks... if they last that long!

We have a hands-on Pastry Boot Camp coming up in September where you can learn all about chocolate. We also have all sorts of pastry classes during the summer, so check out our class calendar for the complete schedule.