Pistachio Cake Recipe -

Pistachio cake topped with chopped pistachios and rose petals on a cake stand.

4 from 2 votes

Pistachio Cake Recipe

Soft, moist, and full of nutty flavor, this eggless pistachio cake is perfect for any celebration! With semolina for a tender crumb and lemon for that bright, citrussy flavor, this cake looks so elegant and yet is simple to make.

Prep Time15

Cook Time40

Course: Cakes, Dessert

Cuisine: American, Indian

Servings: Servings

Calories: 403kcal

Author: Natasha Minocha

Ingredients

1 cup Semolina / Sooji
1/2 cup Pistachio powder Simply grind pistachios in your grinder or food processor
1/4 cup All-purpose flour
1 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Matcha powder Optional. You can also use 2-3 drops of green food color if you wish.
1/2 cup Caster sugar
1 cup Greek yogurt, plain
1/3 cup Coconut oil
2 tsp Lemon juice
Zest of one lemon

Lemon Syrup

1/2 cup Water
1/4 cup Sugar
2 tsp Lemon juice

Topping

Finely chopped pistachios and dried rose petals

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F. Grease a 6" cake tin well.
In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients - semolina, pistachio powder, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, and matcha powder.
Give it all a good whisk to ensure there are no lumps.
1 cup Semolina / Sooji, 1/2 cup Pistachio powder, 1/4 cup All-purpose flour, 1 tsp Baking powder, 1/2 tsp Baking soda, 1/4 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Matcha powder, 1/2 cup Caster sugar
In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt, coconut oil, and lemon juice.
1 cup Greek yogurt, plain, 1/3 cup Coconut oil, 2 tsp Lemon juice
Stir into the dry ingredients. Add the lemon zest. Whisk until a thick, smooth batter is formed.
Zest of one lemon
Pour into the prepared tin, and top with chopped pistachios.
Bake at 180 C / 350 F for 30-40 minutes until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached.

Lemon syrup

While the cake is baking, add water and sugar to a small saucepan and let it simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Take it off the heat and stir in lemon juice.
Taste and adjust for taste. Let this syrup cool completely.
1/2 cup Water, 1/4 cup Sugar, 2 tsp Lemon juice
Once the cake is baked, let it cool for 20 minutes. Then poke holes with a skewer. Spoon or brush the syrup all over the warm cake.
You will need about 3 tbsps of the syrup. Save the rest for another use.
Let the cake cool completely.
Turn it out on a serving platter and sprinkle more chopped pistachios and dried rose petals, if you wish. Serve at room temperature and enjoy!

Video

Notes

I ground the pistachios in the food processor until they were super fine. You can, of course, leave it a bit chunky if you prefer the texture. But keep in mind not to grind them so fine (or too long) that it turns into pistachio butter.
I wanted a really green pistachio cake without any food color. So, in went some matcha powder. This is totally optional.
Avoid overmixing the cake batter. Mix only until the ingredients are combined.
Leftover lemon syrup? Store it in the refrigerator for 7-10 days. It’s excellent for lemonades and iced teas like my watermelon iced tea and peach iced tea.
Pistachio cake keeps very well in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Serve at room temperature.

Nutrition