This elegant pistachio cake is soft and tender, made from scratch with finely ground pistachios for a naturally beautiful hue. Each layer is paired with silky Swiss meringue buttercream that’s lightly sweet, silky, and perfectly balanced against the cake’s delicate flavor. This cake is ideal for Spring gatherings, parties, or anytime you want something a little special.
Why You’ll Love This Pistachio Cake
I feel like pistachio is having a moment right now. It’s always been one of my favorite nuts, but I feel like restaurants and coffeeshops are really catching on. Thanks to the social media and the Dubai chocolate craze, pistachio is really everywhere right now. I even heard it was 2025’s flavor of the year lol. Whether you’ve always been a pistachio lover or recently discovered them, this cake is for you!
The Cake: This pistachio cake is moist and tender with a pistachio flavor that comes through in each bite. It it made from scratch with real pistachios, with vanilla and almond extracts to enhance flavor. The technique for making the cake involves finely grinding pistachios and mixing them with cake flour for a soft crumb and nutty aroma.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream: To avoid overpowering the pistachio cake’s delicate flavor, I decided to frost the cake with Swiss meringue buttercream. SMBC is subtly sweet and silky in texture, allowing it to serve as a perfect complement the pistachio cake. The light and subtle buttercream allows pistachio to take the front seat.
Pistachio Butter: A completely optional ingredient to add is pistachio paste or pistachio butter. You can swirl it into the buttercream between each cake layer for additional flavor. It is a harder to find ingredient and therefore optional, but international food stores or Amazon will have it in stock.
Pistachio layer cake is an elegant and impressive cake to serve at dinner parties and gatherings! I also think of it as a lovely Springtime cake given its pastel green color lol. Other great options are Raspberry White Chocolate Layer Cake, Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake, or Strawberry Chamomile Cake.
Ingredient Notes
You will find a full list of ingredients in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. In the meantime, here are a few ingredient notes to explain the why and things to keep in mind.
Pistachio Cake INGREDIENTS
- Raw, shelled pistachios: I like to buy pre-shelled pistachios but if you have the time you are welcome to shell them yourself. The most important thing is to make sure that you are using unsalted pistachios.
- Cake Flour: Cake flour, which is finer than all-purpose flour and has a lower protein content, contributes to this cake’s soft and tender texture. I do not recommend substituting all-purpose flour.
- Egg Whites: Egg whites keep the cake light and fluffy. Make sure to use room temperature eggs.
- Half & Half: To compensate for not using any egg yolks, I recommend using half & half to add more fat to the cake batter. You can substitute whole milk if that is all you have, but do not use skim or non-fat milk.
- Sour Cream: Adds moisture and fat.
- Vanilla Extract and Almond Extract: Vanilla and almond bring out pistachio flavors. In fact, a almond extract is what you taste is a lot of manufactured pistachio products!
- Optional Green Food Coloring: Just a drop of green gel food coloring adds a hint more color to the cake.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream INGREDIENTS
- Egg Whites: Make sure eggs are fully separated and there is zero yolk in the whites, otherwise they won’t whip up properly.
- Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar to provide sweetness for the buttercream.
- Softened Butter: Use room temperature, softened butter. Room temperature butter is still cool to the touch (not warm) and will leave a clean indent when you press down into it. It should not sink, feel greasy, or be difficult to press down.
- Vanilla Extract: Use pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste for the best flavor.
How to Make Pistachio Cake
Step 1: Make Pistachio Flour. Use a food processor to grind pistachios until they are very fine. They should have the consistency of a nut flour (like almond flour). From there, add cake flour, salt, and leavening agents and pulse them into the pistachios. Now you have the dry ingredients ready!
Step 2: Make and Bake Cake. Use a stand mixer to make the cake batter, keeping the below tips in mind.
- Ingredient Temperature: Ensure that eggs and daily are at room temperature before baking. They will incorporate better this way and prevent the batter from splitting. Soak eggs in a bowl of hot water for 5-10 minutes, and warm daily in the microwave.
- Avoid over-mixing the batter: After adding flour, gently mix the batter until the flour is just combined. This keeps the cake soft and tender.
- Allow cake to cool completely before assembly: if your cake is even slightly warm, the buttercream may melt and cause a mess. You can actually chill the cake layers (tightly wrapped) in the fridge before assembling. It may dry out a bit but tastes great cold!
Step 3: Make Buttercream. See the next section for more detail on this.
Step 4: Assemble Cake. Assemble the cake by layering the cake, buttercream, optional pistachio butter, and repeat. You can then cover the cake with a thin layer of buttercream to give it a semi-naked look, or add a second coat of buttercream. Use any remaining buttercream to pipe decorations!
Swiss Meringue Buttercream
As previously mentioned, Swiss meringue buttercream is the perfect pairing for this pistachio cake. It is subtly sweet, silky, and smooth. You make it by whipping cooked egg whites and sugar into a meringue, and then gradually beating in softened butter. It has a melt-in-your mouth texture that is a lot lighter and less sweet than American buttercream.
While this is a little extra effort than American buttercream, SMBC is actually very forgiving and easy to troubleshoot. Here are a few tips:
- Cooking eggs and sugar: A common mistake is not fully dissolving the sugar into the eggs. You want to make sure that the sugar is fully dissolved, as even a few residual grains will lead to an entirely too grainy buttercream. A good benchmark to keep in mind is getting the egg whites + sugar to 160-170°F.
- Troubleshooting runny SMBC: Your buttercream is likely too warm. Make sure the meringue is cool before adding butter. To fix, place the bowl into the fridge for a few minutes.
- Troubleshooting curdled SMBC: You either added butter to quickly, or the mixture is too cold. Make sure to add the butter one tbsp at a time. To fix curdled buttercream, take 2-3 tbsp of the buttercream, heat it in the microwave for 8-10 seconds, and then beat it back in. This will warm up the mixture and make it smooth and glossy.
- Patience is a virtue: Go slow when adding butter to the meringue and don’t panic if the mixture looks curdled and off at first. It should come together as you continue beating, but if it does not reference the above troubleshooting tips!
FAQs
- What size cake pans should I use?
- I used three 6″ round cake pans. You could alternatively use two 8″ round pans.
- How will I know that the cake is done?
- The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. You can also test by gently tapping the top of the cake. It should bounce back instead of sink.
- How should I store leftover cake?
- Place the cake in an airtight container, or tightly wrap individual slices with a layer of plastic wrap followed by foil. It is stable at room temperature for 1-2 days, or up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Note that the buttercream will firm up in the fridge.
Pin and Save for Later
Are you interested in making this recipe but not ready to bake yet? Not to worry! You can hover over (or tap on mobile/tablet) any image in this post to save it to Pinterest. You can also directly pin the recipe card down below. The recipe will be waiting for you when you need it. 🙂
Happy baking my friends and as always, hope you love your pistachio cake!
Pistachio Layer Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream
This is my best and favorite pistachio cake recipe.
Ingredients
Pistachio Cake
- 1 cup (125g) raw pistachios, shelled
- 1½ cups (170g) cake flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cup (250g) granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, softened
- 4 tbsp (56g) vegetable oil
- 4 large egg whites (120g), room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp almond extract
- ½ cup half and half or whole milk
- ½ cup full fat sour cream
- Drop of green food coloring (optional)
Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- 6 large egg whites (180g egg white)
- 2 cups (400g) sugar
- 2 cups (452g) unsalted butter, softened and cut into slices
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- (optional) pistachio butter or spread for filling
Instructions
Pistachio Cake Layers
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease three 6" round cake pans. Option here to also line the pans with parchment rounds.
- Pulse the pistachios in a food processor until they become very fine, like flour. Add the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the food processor and pulse them in with the pistachios until they are combined. The goal is to make a pistachio flour. Set the flour aside while you start prepping the batter.
- Beat the granulated sugar, butter, and oil together in an electric mixer on medium-high speed with the paddle attachment for 2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg whites, one at a time, fully incorporating each one before adding the next. Pause occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Then, mix in the vanilla and almond extracts.
- Whisk the milk and sour cream together until smooth. These will be your 'wet ingredients'.
- Alternate mixing in the pistachio flour and wet ingredients to the batter on low speed. Start with ⅓ of the flour, followed by half the wet ingredients, another ⅓ of the flour, the remaining wet ingredients, and then the remaining flour. Continue mixing on low speed until the flour is just combined and you have an even batter. Avoid over-mixing.
- Divide the batter evenly between the three cake pans. Bake for 28-32 minutes, or as long as needed until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, before flipping them out onto a wire rack. Wrap them tightly with saran wrap to prevent them from drying out and then allow them to cool down completely.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Whisk the egg whites and sugar together in a heatproof bowl. You want a bowl that is large enough to rest on top of a pot to create a double boiler.
- Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Start warming up the egg white mixture, whisking occasionally. If any sugar granules get stuck on the sides of the bowl, use a rubber spatula to gently push them back into the egg white. As the mixture grows warmer, start whisking it more constantly until it reaches a temperature of 160°F or until the sugar is no longer grainy between your fingers.
- Transfer the warmed egg white mixture to a very clean mixer bowl. Mix on medium-high speed with the whisk attachment until stiff and glossy peaks form. The egg should have cooled down to room temperature by this point, but if not give it time to do so before moving on.
- Switch to the paddle attachment and start adding the butter one slice at a time while running the mixer on low speed, Allow each piece of butter to fully combine before adding the next. Once all the butter has been added, add the vanilla extract and pinch of salt and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Assembling the Cake
- Place one round of fully cooled pistachio cake onto a cake stand or board. Spread a ½ inch layer of Swiss meringue buttercream on top, or as much as your prefer. Then, if using, swirl a few tablespoons of pistachio spread into the buttercream.
- Place the next cake layer on top and repeat.
- Add the final cake layer and then spread a thin layer of buttercream on top and around the sides of the entire cake to make a crumb coat. Set this in the fridge to chill for 15-20 minutes (or if there is no room in the fridge, then leave it on the counter).
- Either leave the cake as-is, or spread another, thicker layer of frosting around the entire cake and smooth it out with a spatula or scraper. It doesn't have to be perfect! Feel free to pipe more frosting on top or on the sides to decorate if desired.
- Cut into slices and enjoy!
Notes
Pistachio Cake Tips
- Use raw, unsalted pistachios. You can buy pistachios in bulk at some grocery store or online.
- Make sure that the pistachio cake layers are fully cool before frosting them. You can make the cake layers ahead of time and store them tightly wrapped in the refrigerator overnight, or in the freezer for longer.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream Tips:
- Ensure that there is no yolk in your egg whites and that all your equipment is very clean. Scrub down the mixing bowls and whisks before you begin to get rid of any grease. You can also wipe them down with a bit of vinegar.
- As you begin adding butter, it is completely normal for the buttercream to look a bit curdled or broken. Just keep beating and it will eventually come together. If it does not come together after 5+ minutes of beating, troubleshoot if it is too hot or too cold.
- If too cold, you can take ~2 tbsp of the buttercream and heat it for 8-10 seconds in the microwave. Add the warmed buttercream (it may be melted) back into the mixer and continue beating.
- If too warm, place mixing bowl in the refrigerator for a few minutes.
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