Pistachio Cake With Buttercream Frosting (Printable)
A moist pistachio cake with creamy buttercream frosting, perfect for celebrations or treating yourself.
# What You'll Need:
→ Pistachio Cake
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→ Pistachio Buttercream Frosting
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# How to Make It:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a food processor, finely grind 1 1/2 cups pistachios. Set aside.
03 - In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
04 - In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
05 - Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract.
06 - Mix in the ground pistachios until evenly distributed.
07 - Alternately add the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with flour. Add sour cream and mix until just combined.
08 - Divide the batter evenly between prepared pans.
09 - Bake for 28-32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
10 - Process 1 cup pistachios until very finely ground or beginning to form a paste.
11 - In a mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add the pistachio paste and mix well.
12 - Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until fluffy. Add vanilla and salt. Add cream 1 tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.
13 - Once cakes are cooled, spread frosting between layers and over the top and sides. Decorate with extra chopped pistachios if desired.
# Expert Tips:
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- The buttercream is genuinely silky and not cloyingly sweet like most bakery frostings
- Your kitchen will smell like an upscale Italian pastry shop while this bakes
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- Overgrinding pistachios releases too much oil and makes your cake dense and greasy not the tender texture you want
- Frosting a warm cake is a disaster the buttercream will melt into a sad puddle and slide right off
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- Buy pistachios from the bulk bins and taste one first rancid nuts cannot be saved and will ruin everything
- Weigh your pistachios after shelling since shells account for about half the weight