This lemon pistachio cake is the best way to celebrate Spring. It’s bursting with fresh, zesty lemon and the nutty crunch of pistachios. The cake has a springy crumb that soaks up the creamy, lemony mascarpone and creates a perfect bite of heaven. You won’t want to wait for warm Spring days to make it.
You can make this lemon pistachio cake plain for a simple afternoon snack, or dress it up with the velvety mascarpone frosting for an elegant dessert. Or better yet, snack on it with the frosting.
Because to be honest, most frosting I could live without. It’s usually tooth achingly sweet, and lacking in flavor and texture. But this mascarpone frosting is lemony, creamy, smooth and just sweet enough to take the pistachio cake to the next level. Don’t skip it.
how do you make a lemon pistachio cake from scratch?
- Blend pistachios and lemon zest until finely ground (but not pistachio butter!)
- Add ground pistachios to flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
- Whisk together eggs, sour cream, milk and vanilla. Set aside.
- Cream butter, sugar and salt together until light and fluffy
- Alternate adding dry and wet ingredients, mix until just combined.
- Bake for about 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely.
- Top with lemon mascarpone frosting.
can you use salted pistachios in cake?
Yes! Salted pistachios are fine to use. The small amount of extra salt will just deepen the flavor of the lemon pistachio cake.
does mascarpone frosting need to be refrigerated?
Yes, this frosting does need to be refrigerated if you plan to store it for more than an hour. The mascarpone frosting will stay mostly soft when cold, but it will taste the best when brought to room temperature.
If you make and frost this lemon pistachio cake ahead, pull it out of the refrigerator 30 minutes prior to serving.
what’s a substitute for cake flour?
If you don’t have cake flour on hand, don’t fret. To make a substitute for 2 cups of cake flour, use 1 ¾ cup all purpose flour and ¼ cup cornstarch.
For this pistachio cake recipe, simply put 3 tbsp cornstarch in the bottom of a 1-cup measuring cup, then spoon all-purpose flour on top and level. Measure the remaining ½ cup of flour as usual and proceed with the recipe!
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lemon pistachio cake with mascarpone frosting
This lemon pistachio cake is bursting with fresh, zesty lemon and the nutty crunch of pistachios. Top it with velvety mascarpone frosting for a delicious spring cake.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 16
- Category: Cake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
lemon pistachio cake
- ¾ cup shelled roasted pistachios, plus more for topping
- zest of 2 lemons
- 1 ½ cup cake flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ tsp kosher salt
- 3 eggs
- ¼ cup full fat sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup whole milk
mascarpone frosting
- 6 oz (¾ cup) mascarpone, room temperature
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
- ⅛ tsp kosher salt
Instructions
lemon pistachio cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter an 8x8-inch baking pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and butter the paper.
- Place the pistachios and lemon zest in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely ground (but not pistachio butter). Pour mixture into a bowl along with flour, baking powder and baking soda. Whisk to combine, then set aside. Whisk to combine sour cream, vanilla and milk in a small bowl and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl as needed.
- With the mixer on low, alternate adding the dry ingredients (in three additions) and wet ingredients (in two additions), starting and ending with the dry.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 35- 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Carefully turn cake out onto a work surface, peel off parchment paper, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Spread with frosting, sprinkle with chopped pistachios and serve at room temperature.
mascarpone frosting
- Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Use a hand mixer fitted with beater attachments to mix until smooth. Be very careful not to over mix, the frosting can curdle.
Notes
Cake will keep for up to 3 days. Refrigerate once frosted.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/16 of cake
- Calories: 272
- Sugar: 19g
- Sodium: 266mg
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated Fat: 7.8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6.5g
- Trans Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 0.8g
- Protein: 4.3g
- Cholesterol: 68mg
Genevieve says
As always your recipes are amazing! Made this beauty for my husbands birthday and it was perfect! I also so appreciate the swaps in the comments above the recipe because I could not find cake flour anywhere! If anyone hasn’t tried your recipes they are missing out. So delicious!!!
Indi Hampton says
ahhhh thanks so much Gen!!! so happy it worked out for Ed's birthday! you're the best!
Karina says
Sound delicious, I will try your recipe, thank you so much for sharing with us.
Indi Hampton says
Can't wait to hear how it goes!
Elizabeth says
This cake was outstanding. Made it for a friend's birthday. He loves pistachio. The only ting I subbed was pure lemon extract for the zest, as I didn't have any lemons. Flavors marry together wonderfully. Thank you so much for sharing!
Indi Hampton says
I'm so happy to hear this!!
Carmen says
Can I double the recipe and it will do ok? I noticed that when I click on 2X the amounts of the Mascarpone remain at 4/4 cup, shouldn't I need 1 1/2 cups?
Indi Hampton says
Hi Carmen! I've never doubled it, but I don't see why it wouldn't work! And yes, you're absolutely right about the mascarpone. The app seems to only double the first number listed (ounces in this case), so definitely double check any amount that's in parentheses.
Michelle Flynn says
Love this cake, it was delicious and tastes like spring time. I see in your notes you mention buttermilk but I don't see it in the ingredient list. Is that something that can be added to the cake batter?
Indi Hampton says
Thank you and good catch-- I totally meant to write milk in that list. I think with the sour cream, extra buttermilk would be unnecessary (in terms of reacting with the baking soda), though I'm not sure what effect it would have taste-wise. It's a small amount, so it might just amplify the "lemony" quality and be delicious!
Adrienne says
Hi! If I don’t have mascarpone cheese for the frosting can I sub cream cheese? I have never made a lemon pistachio cake would it be good with cream cheese frosting? I appreciate it:) it looks absolutely delicious!
Indi Hampton says
Yes! That would be delicious!
Lori says
I made my yesterday for some reason it came out pretty dry and bread like. Not sure if I maybe overMixed the batter? I used a stand mixer and didn’t mix more then it said in the recipe
Indi Hampton says
Shoot, I'm so sorry to hear that. It it possible the cake got over-baked?
Elsa says
This was wonderful. I made it for my mom’s birthday and it was a hit. Love that it’s not super sweet and the lemon is well balanced. The icing is delicious. I did have to bake a bit longer than 40 minutes but as the recipe says, bake until toothpick comes out clean ! Glad I found this recipe in the Costco magazine and now the website to make more tasty items !
Indi Hampton says
Thank you so, so much! I love hearing this!
Neiasha simons says
Excellent recipe!
For a beginner baker-this was simple and delicious. My mother gave me 2lbs of pistachios and I found your recipe. It came out perfect. My son who doesn't eat cake asked for seconds. I will be trying more recipes.
Thank you, thank you
Nee
Indi Hampton says
Thank you Nee!! I'm so happy to hear this!
Kristina says
This recipe sounds delicious! If I were to make cupcakes instead of a cake would that still work? How long would you suggest baking them for?
Indi Hampton says
Hi Kristina! I think it should work? I'd say fill the cups 2/3 full and bake for 18- 22 minutes. I've never done it but if I were to test the recipe for cupcakes, that's where I'd start! I'd love to know how it goes 🙂
Mary Beth says
Love the combo of lemon and pistachio! I clipped this recipe from my Costco Connection magazine a year ago and finally got around to making it this weekend. I did add some lemon and raspberry bits from King Arthur just for fun!
Indi Hampton says
Oh those additions sound so tasty!! Thanks for sharing!
Amber L VanCuren says
So good! Will def make again. The only thing is the cake was dry, without overcooking. Next time I will use oil or applesauce in place of butter. Also, maybe layer the cake. I would like more frosting with it. The flavor was amazing though!
Indi Hampton says
Thanks Amber! Great idea on the oil or applesauce!
Janice says
Hi Indi!
I cannot wait to try this...love pistachios, however, never found a recipe on here that didn't use pistachio pudding! Or some use a cake mix! I'm an old fashioned cook and make everything from scratch. Thank you for posting this recipe!
Indi Hampton says
Absolutely!! The pistachios so much great texture and flavor!
Lena says
Loved this cake. Made it exactly as is for my daughters 27 th birthday. Everyone loved it. The only thing is would change next time is to cut it in half and add icing to the middle. We like icing. 😊
Indi Hampton says
Oh I LOVE that idea!!! Thanks for sharing!
Caitlin says
This is my new favorite thing to bake! Thank you for sharing this recipe. Really delicious and moist! And if you love lemon like me, here’s a tweak worth trying - I added the juice from half of a lemon to the wet ingredients. Really infuses the cake with lemon.
Indi Hampton says
Ohhh that sounds SO GOOD! Thank you!!
Alyssa says
I made this as a two layer birthday cake using 8 inch rounds. No mascarpone on hand so I substituted with cream cheese frosting (with lemon zest and a spoonful of lemon curd). I sprinkled a light layer of ground pistachios on the middle frosting filling as well as on top. It was absolutely delicious!
Maya says
Hi there! I made two cakes in a round 8 inch form as well, added more mascarpone (doubled in quantity) so I had a layer in between the cakes AND I spread in between a Bon Mama Raspberry Preserve which was a great taste altogether! I like my frosting a bit lemony so after lemon zest I also added lemon flavor extract! It was a birthday cake for my husband and I carried it on the boat ride - everyone loved it! Thank you!
Indi Hampton says
Oh my gosh, the raspberry preserve inside sounds amazing. Thanks for sharing!