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A beautiful and impressive Pistachio Cake that’s whipped up using a food processor in under 10 minutes! Yup, this thing of beauty is made with real pistachios and no artificial flavours or colouring. Topped with fresh whipped cream and juicy, ripe strawberries it’s pretty hard to resist and perfect for any occasion!
I mean, how pretty is this pistachio cake!? Not only is it beautiful but it’s just so easy to make that you can’t go wrong!
I’m talking everything blitzed up in a food processor then dumped into a loaf pan easy…oh yes!
It’s got nutty pistachios crushed up all through the batter giving the cake the most delicious flavour that’s not too sweet (hello cake for breakfast!). If you have a serious sweet tooth and prefer super sweet desserts than you can easily adapt the topping (more info on that below).
Top Baking Tip! – To make this pistachio cake you’ll need softened butter so if you don’t want to wait around for it to come to room temperature (or you forgot to bring it out of the fridge) I have the easiest method ever here for getting soft butter, fast!
Be sure to check out this simple hack for future bakes too, it’s so easy!
How to Make the Easiest Pistachio Cake – Step By Step
Put the pistachios in a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs. Be careful not to over blitz to the point the oils are released or they’ll turn into a paste (photo 1-2).
Add all the other ingredients to the food processor and blitz until thoroughly combined (photos 3-4).
Transfer the batter to a loaf pan and bake for 35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (photo 5).
Leave to cool for 10 minutes in the loaf pan then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Whip the heavy cream until thick but be careful not to over whip. Spread over the pistachio cake and top with strawberries and more roughly chopped pistachios (photo 6).
Making Ground Pistachios
As you can see from the step by step photos above making ground pistachios is SO easy but there are a couple of important tips to keep in mind.
- Make sure the pistachios are dry and the food processor is completely dry too, this will help create and extra-fine crumb.
- Don’t over blitz the pistachios. They only need a few seconds and you may need to give the pistachios a stir halfway through. I tend to blitz in small bursts until I have a fine crumb if you over blitz the oils will start to release and they’ll turn into a paste then nut butter.
Pistachio Cake Frosting & Toppings
I love to top this pistachio cake with fresh whipped cream, fresh cut strawberries and some more chopped pistachios. The colours are beautiful and the cream is fresh and simple.
If you prefer a sweeter topping then you can add some powdered sugar (icing sugar) into the cream as you’re whipping it or opt for a different topping altogether. Here are some recommendations of flavours that would go well;
Buttercream – vanilla, lemon, strawberry or even chocolate
- Cream cheese – I’d love a simple cream cheese frosting with a little vanilla and lemon zest but choose your favourite!
- Icing or glaze – you can go with a simple glaze made with powdered sugar (icing sugar) and water then add citrus zest or vanilla followed by chopped berries.
- Fruit – you don’t have to stop at fresh strawberries why not try raspberries, blueberries or blackberries!
How to Store Leftovers
Because the cake is topped with fresh cream it won’t last long at room temperature for more than a 4-5 hours so I recommend storing any leftovers in the fridge which should last up to 3 days. Follow the same advice for a cream cheese or buttercream topping.
If you have an uniced cake then it’ll last for up to a week out of the fridge (covered or in an airtight container) or it can be frozen.
Top Tips for Making Pistachio Cake with Strawberries & Cream
- I used a 10×5 inch (24x12cm) loaf pan but you could also use a slightly larger or smaller pan just bear in mind that a larger pan will give you a thinner cake and smaller pan will give you a thicker cake so cooking times may differ by a few minutes.
- To check the cake is done insert a wooden toothpick into the centre and if it comes out clean it’s done. If there is wet batter on the stick then it needs a little longer.
- When blitzing the pistachios make sure you have a fine crumb but don’t over blitz to the point that the oils start to release or the nuts will start to turn into a paste. If that happens then keep blitz until you have nut butter and start over.
- Use a non-stick loaf pan for this recipe or lightly grease and line a regular pan with butter and parchment paper.
- Let the cake cool for 10 minutes in the loaf pan then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before topping with cream or frosting.
- Check out my easy hack for getting softened butter super fast (no microwave or grating).
More Desserts You Might Like;
- Apple Olive Oil Cake
- Italian Breakfast Cake – Ciambella Allo Yogurt
- No Bake Chocolate Cheesecake
- Pandoro Christmas Cake with Pistachios and White Chocolate
If you’ve tried this Pistachio Cake or any other recipe on the blog please let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food and what I’m getting up to.
Step By Step Photos Above
Most of our recipes come with step by step photos, helpful tips and tricks to make it perfectly first time and even video!
Pistachio Cake with Strawberries & Cream
Ingredients
- 7 oz (14 tbsp) softened butter, (200g)
- 1 ½ cups self-raising flour, (200g)
- 1/2 cup buttermilk, (130g)
- 1 cup shelled pistachios, (100g)
- 1 ¼ cups golden caster sugar, (200g)
- 1 tsp baking soda, (bicarb)
- 3 large eggs, (free range)
- Zest of 1 lemon
- ¼ tsp vanilla paste
Topping
- 1 cup heavy cream or double cream, (250ml)
- 4-5 strawberries, cut in half
- 1-2 tbsp pistachios, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180C (350F) and grease and line a 10x5 inch (24x12cm) loaf pan if not using non-stick.
- Put the pistachios in a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs. Be careful not to over blitz to the point the oils are released or they’ll turn into a paste.
- Add all the other ingredients to the blitzed pistachios and blitz until thoroughly combined.
- Transfer the batter to a loaf pan and bake for 35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean
- Leave to cool for 10 minutes in the loaf pan then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Whip the heavy cream until thick but be careful not to over whip. Spread over the pistachio cake and top with strawberries and more roughly chopped pistachios.
Notes
- I used a 10x5 inch (24x12cm) loaf pan but you could also use a slightly larger or smaller pan just bear in mind that a larger pan will give you a thinner cake and smaller pan will give you a thicker cake so cooking times may differ by a few minutes.
- To check the cake is done insert a wooden toothpick into the centre and if it comes out clean it's done. If there is wet batter on the stick then it needs a little longer.
- When blitzing the pistachios make sure you have a fine crumb but don't over blitz to the point that the oils start to release or the nuts will start to turn into a paste. If that happens then keep blitz until you have nut butter and start over.
- Use a non-stick loaf pan for this recipe or lightly grease and line a regular pan with butter and parchment paper.
- Let the cake cool for 10 minutes in the loaf pan then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before topping with cream or frosting.
- Check out my easy hack for getting softened butter super fast (no microwave or grating).
Helpful Info for All Recipes
- I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise
- When I use canned or jarred tomatoes of any kind I always use Cirio or Mutti brands for the best results and flavour.
- All vegetables are medium sized unless stated otherwise
- All recipes are tested and developed using a fan (convection) oven
- Find out more about how nutrition is calculated.
- Check out our must have Italian Pantry Staples.
- You can also find all our Essential Kitchen Tools for Italian Cooking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can this be made with salted pistachios?
I’ve never tried it but I think it would make the cake too salty.
We loved this cake. It tasted great. My daughter frosted the whole thing and made it look beautiful to celebrate my youngest’ sweet 16 birthday. The only problem is that the middle fell – it was concave. What did we do wrong? We used regular sugar. Was that the problem? I may also have put too much salt into the AP flour that I was doctoring up as a substitute for self-raising flour (used nearly 1.5 cups AP flour, added 2.25 tsp .baking powder. and I’m not sure how much salt though it should have been a little more than 1/4 tsp salt). Ideas? Want to make it again but hoping for a better turn out.
Wow! In under 10 minutes! It’s simply gorgeous! And I love all the natural foods, just real ingredients!
Yes! So quick to whip up in the food processor then baked. Thanks so much Jess!
oh my this look incredible. I just love anything pistachio flavored so this is definitely going on my must make list!
Thanks so much Danielle I LOVE pistachio desserts!
This looks so pretty! I also love the look of buttermilk in cakes to make them moist and fluffy. I am seriously looking forward to making this.
Thanks so much Adrianne, hope you enjoy it!
This cake looks sooo delicious and full of flavours. Plus, the fact that it is made in the food processor is just genius – such an easy and quick way to make a cake! Cant wait to try it
Thanks so much Sylvie, I love how easy it is!
Oh how beautiful! This is the perfect summer cake recipe.
Thanks so much Cilona, it’s perfect for this time of year!