Ultimate Pistachio Cake with Lemon Glaze Recipe
This Original Pistachio Cake is a moist and flavorful loaf cake featuring finely ground toasted pistachios, warm spices like ginger and cardamom, and a hint of almond and vanilla extract. Topped with a zesty lemon glaze and more toasted pistachios for garnish, it’s a sophisticated yet easy-to-make treat perfect for teatime or dessert.
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 70 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf cake, about 8–10 servings
- Category: Baking
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Pistachio Cake
- 1 ¼ cup (160g) raw shelled pistachios, toasted + more for garnish
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar, plus 1–2 tablespoons for topping
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 tablespoons (113g) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 3 large eggs (150g total)
- ⅓ cup (85g) buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon pure almond extract
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp (145g) whole-wheat flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons (6g) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon (2g) ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
Lemon Glaze
- 1 ¼ cups (140g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Prepare Oven and Pan: Preheat your oven to 325ºF (163ºC) and position the rack in the middle. Line an 8½ × 4½-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, allowing about 2 inches of overhang on two sides for easy cake removal.
- Grind Pistachios and Sugar: In a food processor, combine the 1 ¼ cups of toasted pistachios, 1 cup granulated sugar, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Process until finely ground into a powder but not a paste, about 1 ½ minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through to ensure even grinding.
- Add Butter: Pulse in cold cubed butter 10 times into the pistachio mixture. Then process continuously until the mixture becomes clumpy yet smooth and shiny, approximately 2 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway through.
- Incorporate Wet Ingredients: Slowly stream in the 3 eggs and ⅓ cup buttermilk while blending for about 1 minute until combined. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and process again to mix fully.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: Add the whole-wheat flour, baking powder, ground ginger, and ground cardamom to the processor. Pulse or process just until everything is combined—do not overmix.
- Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar evenly over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 65–72 minutes until the cake is tall, golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool the Cake: Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then, run a knife around the edges to loosen the cake and lift it out using the parchment paper overhang. Transfer the cake to the wire rack and let it cool completely.
- Prepare Lemon Glaze: In a medium-small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice, grated lemon zest, and a pinch of salt until the glaze is smooth and pourable.
- Glaze and Garnish: Pour the lemon glaze over the cooled cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Sprinkle with additional toasted chopped pistachios for garnish. Let the glaze set before slicing and serving.
Notes
- To toast pistachios, spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake at 350ºF (175ºC) for 5–8 minutes until fragrant and lightly browned.
- Use fresh lemon juice and zest for the most vibrant glaze flavor.
- Be careful not to over-process the pistachio and butter mixture; the texture should be clumpy but shiny.
- Loaf pan size is important to ensure even baking and proper cake height.
- Allow the glaze to fully set on the cake before slicing to avoid smearing.