Pistachio Cupcakes
I wanted to make something special for Saint Patrick’s Day, but I didn’t want whatever I made to be too Saint Patrick’s Day”ish”…I wanted to be able to make the recipe throughout the year.
So, what’s a girl to do but hit Pinterest! After 583 straight hours of browsing Pinterest, I finally decided on Pistachio Cupcakes.
Pistachios are green and the pistachio pudding mix that I have added gives just a hint of green to the batter, but not so much that you couldn’t make these any day of the year.
Speaking of pistachios, boy are they hard! I had a bit of a difficult time chopping them and finally lost patience and resorted to dirtying my food processor. Either way, chop them fine, but not so fine that they are dust. You will want some variation in size.
The cupcake batter should be a pale green.
I used a liner like this one pictured above. I liked the springlike grass on it. They are a little bigger than some liners and nice and sturdy. I purchased them at a local bulk food store but they should be available at any store where baking supplies are sold.
I filled my liners about 2/3 full, using the lowest point on the scalloped edge of the liner as the top.
Because I baked these cupcakes at a lower temperature of 325 degrees F, the tops are flat. I like piping a mound of frosting on a flat surface.
However, if you prefer a domed top to this cupcake, bake at 350 degrees F. for a shorter time period.
You can see here, that the finished cake has only the slightest green hue to it. You don’t want a bright garish green.
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- 1½ cups of white sugar
- 1 (99g) package of pistachio pudding (I used Jello brand - The crystals in this brand are the palest of green, almost white so your cake doesn't turn out a garish, neon green)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup chopped pistachios (reserve1/4 cup for garnish)
- 1¼ cups milk
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups cake flour (OR 1¾ cups all-purpose flour with ¼ cup cornstarch, sifted together well. Which basically has turned the all-purpose flour to cake flour)
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F for a flat topped cupcake or 350 degrees F for a domed top ( I find it easier to pipe on a flat top, so that's what I went with.)
- Fill muffin tins with cupcake liners. (See note)
- Whisk together dry ingredients - flour, (cornstarch if using), baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Mix together the milk, oil and vanilla. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer combine butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add pudding mix to butter and sugar, mixing well to combine.
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add chopped pistachios
- Starting with the flour and ending with the milk mixture, alternately add dry and wet ingredients, using about ⅓ of each at a time.
- Scoop batter into prepared muffin tins. Filling each about ¾ full (I find a large ice cream scoop is the perfect tool to use)
- Bake until golden and a cake tester or toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean. Depending on the oven temperature you choose and variances in temperatures between ovens, this will take anywhere from 17 - 28 minutes, so check them often! (by using the oven light, don't keep opening the oven door)
- Transfer to rack; let cool completely.
- Frost with your favourite icing, I used a basic white vanilla bean frosting and piped it on the tops.
- Garnish with reserved chopped pistachios.
I love this recipe. It is a little different from a typical cupcake and tastes amazing. I hope you will love it too.
As always, if you have any questions at all, please feel free to ask.
Jen V says
Those look really good! We eat shelled pistachios all the time but I have never used them in recipes. I might have to make your cupcakes for dessert for St Patrick’s Day tomorrow. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Monica Parlee says
Thanks so much Jen, I hope you enjoy them, they are a very tasty treat. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!
Brenda says
Would it be better to use pistachio extract instead of vanilla ?
Monica Parlee says
Sure Brenda, if you have pistachio extract, I think that would work well!