Pistachio & Lemon Cake

A light nutty lemony cake with creamy frosting!

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This light, bright and nutty pistachio and lemon cake is perfect for a summer dessert. It has lots of pistachio flavor with lemon in the background and is topped with perfectly sweetened creamy frosting. Using a star tip for the frosting creates a beautiful presentation, and you can add ground pistachios, lemon slices, or berries for even more freshness. It’s easy to make, and you can even make it ahead of time. I can’t wait for you to try it!

Why you’ll want to make this all summer

• Moist, light lemony cake
• Nutty, crunchy pistachios
• Sweet, creamy frosting
• An easy delicious lemony pistachio cake that’s light and perfect for summer!

The ingredients

The Dry Ingredients for the cake:

• All-purpose flour
• Cornstarch –this lightens the flour up, making it similar to cake flour
• Pistachios -ground
• Baking powder –for the rise
• Zest of a large lemon –substitute a tbsp. of orange blossom water or rose water

The Wet Ingredients for the cake:

• Unsalted butter –softened
• Light olive oil –or your favorite vegetable oil
• Eggs at room temperature
• Granulated sugar
• Pure vanilla extract
• Fresh lemon juice –zest your lemon first
• Plain yogurt –regular or Greek, just make sure it’s full-fat yogurt

The Frosting:

• Mascarpone cheese or cream cheese –room temperature
• Confectioner’s sugar
• Heavy whipping cream
• Pure vanilla extract
• Zest of a lemon –always zest before juicing

Garnish:

• Ground pistachios
• optional: raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries

How to make Pistachio and Lemon Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350 °F, 180 °C.
• Grease a 9-inch (23 cm) round springform pan.
• Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk them together.
• In the bowl of a tabletop mixer that has been fitted with the whisk attachment, add the butter, sugar, vanilla, and oil, and then beat together until fluffy –about 3 minutes on high speed.
• Add the eggs one at a time and beat until incorporated.
• Next, add the yogurt and lemon juice and beat until incorporated. The mixture will appear broken, but it will come together once the flour has been added.
• Add the flour in 2-3 batches. When the final batch of flour is left, add the ground pistachios to it and toss them until coated. Add the mixture to the batter and whisk together until just incorporated.
• Using a spatula, mix the batter to release anything stuck to the sides or bottom of the bowl.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top.
• Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for about 55-65 minutes. The cake is ready when a toothpick that has been inserted into the center of the cake comes out with some moist crumbs attached.
• Allow the cake to cool completely, and then transfer it to a serving platter or cake pedestal.

Make the Frosting:

• Combine all the frosting ingredients in a mixing bowl and whip them until thick and fluffy.
• Transfer the frosting to a piping bag that has been fitted with a large star tip and pipe stars on top of the completely cooled cake.
• Sprinkle the top of the frosting with some ground pistachios

Make ahead and freeze cake

If you have a day that you’ll need a delicious dessert but not a lot of time to make it, this cake is perfect! You can make it ahead up to two weeks in advance. Once the cake cools completely, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze. The night before serving, set the cake on the counter to thaw. All you’ll have left to do is the frosting and your choice of toppings.

Serving

I love the look of the frosting topped with ground pistachios. However, you could add some lemon zest or lemon slices on top of the frosting to make it even brighter or add more freshness with raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries. No matter what toppings you choose, you’ll definitely need a delicious cup of Greek coffee to go with each slice of cake. Kali Orexi!

More of my Favorite Cake Recipes:

• Tahini Cake with Chocolate
• Hazelnut Coffee Cake
• Greek Honey Cake
• Moist Chocolate Cream Cake
• Gluten-Free Almond Orange Cake