Pistachio is my Mom's favorite flavor ans so does the keshar-pista (saffron-pistachio). So I decided to make a nice pistachio cake for Mom on her birthday on 25th April.
Well this recipe can be treated as basic cake recipe, you can replace pistachio by almonds,cashews, chocolate, fruit pulp etc. This cake can serve about 5-6 people very easily. I prefer making standard whipping cream frosting to cake and is explained below as well.I have made a layered cake but you can use single tin to make layers as well.
Ingredients for cake:
1. 250 Grams of plain flour (maida)
2. 250 Grams of sugar (powdered sugar)
3. 100 Grams of butter (room temperature)
4. 240 ml buttermilk
4. 2 Tsp baking powder
5. 2 Eggs
6. 1 Tsp baking soda
7. 1 Tsp white vinegar
8. 1 Tsp pistachio food flavour
9. 100 Grams pistachios
10. Pinch of salt
11. 1 Tsp fresh lime juice
12. 1/2 Tsp food color (saffron)
13. 5-6 strands of saffron.
Method:
1. We will start by making buttermilk. Add 1 Tsp of fresh lime juice (strained) in 240ml milk and set aside. This is our 240ml buttermilk. Add 5-6 saffron strand to buttermilk and add in food color.
2. Grease up 2 cake tins, a 9" tin and 7" tin, or you can use single 9" tin with some butter and plain flour, or spray it with cooking spray to prevent cake from sticking to tin.
3. sift together flour, salt, baking powder and set aside, this is our cake flour.
4. Start beating up butter and sugar mixture until its light, fluffy and glossy.
5. Add in eggs, one at a time in butter-sugar mixture and mix well.
6. Divide cake flour in 2 parts, add first part in above mixture and mix well.
7. Add buttermilk and mix well, mix second part of cake flour to mixture and beat very well, so that more air will be incorporated.
8. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree Celsius
9. Cut about 75 grams of pistachios in halfs and coat them with plain flour, and add in mixture and give a gentle mix.
10. We are ready to pour in cake mixture into tin. Now add 1 Tsp baking soda with 1 Tsp of vinegar in small bowl. As mixture fizzes up, quickly add it in cake mixture and give a gentle stir.
11. Pour mixture into 2 greased tins (half-half) and bake cake for about 30-35 minutes or toothpick inserted in cake center come out clean.
12. Take out of oven and cool it off.
Ingredients for frosting:
1. 400ml whipping cream (I prefer using dairy free whipping cream, its soya based and good for health, as it does not have cholesterol)
2. Food color of your choice.
Method:
1. scrape of top of cake, if cake top is not even (I have best recipe for such leftover cake :) ),
so that cake surface is even.
2.Whip cream with food color until soft peaks are formed.
3. Apply whipped cream with flat spatula all over the cake, in thin even layer.
4. Finely chop 25gms of pistachios and sprinkle on top.
That's it. Make sure you keep cake in cool place as cream frosting may melt. If you want to add any fruit pulp, chocolate sauce you can add it in step no. 7.
Enjoy :)
Well this recipe can be treated as basic cake recipe, you can replace pistachio by almonds,cashews, chocolate, fruit pulp etc. This cake can serve about 5-6 people very easily. I prefer making standard whipping cream frosting to cake and is explained below as well.I have made a layered cake but you can use single tin to make layers as well.
Ingredients for cake:
1. 250 Grams of plain flour (maida)
2. 250 Grams of sugar (powdered sugar)
3. 100 Grams of butter (room temperature)
4. 240 ml buttermilk
4. 2 Tsp baking powder
5. 2 Eggs
6. 1 Tsp baking soda
7. 1 Tsp white vinegar
8. 1 Tsp pistachio food flavour
9. 100 Grams pistachios
10. Pinch of salt
11. 1 Tsp fresh lime juice
12. 1/2 Tsp food color (saffron)
13. 5-6 strands of saffron.
Method:
1. We will start by making buttermilk. Add 1 Tsp of fresh lime juice (strained) in 240ml milk and set aside. This is our 240ml buttermilk. Add 5-6 saffron strand to buttermilk and add in food color.
Buttermilk with food color
2. Grease up 2 cake tins, a 9" tin and 7" tin, or you can use single 9" tin with some butter and plain flour, or spray it with cooking spray to prevent cake from sticking to tin.
3. sift together flour, salt, baking powder and set aside, this is our cake flour.
4. Start beating up butter and sugar mixture until its light, fluffy and glossy.
Mixture of butter, sugar and eggs
5. Add in eggs, one at a time in butter-sugar mixture and mix well.
6. Divide cake flour in 2 parts, add first part in above mixture and mix well.
7. Add buttermilk and mix well, mix second part of cake flour to mixture and beat very well, so that more air will be incorporated.
Adding flour and buttermilk mixture
8. Pre-heat oven to 180 degree Celsius
9. Cut about 75 grams of pistachios in halfs and coat them with plain flour, and add in mixture and give a gentle mix.
10. We are ready to pour in cake mixture into tin. Now add 1 Tsp baking soda with 1 Tsp of vinegar in small bowl. As mixture fizzes up, quickly add it in cake mixture and give a gentle stir.
Cake batter ready to pour in
11. Pour mixture into 2 greased tins (half-half) and bake cake for about 30-35 minutes or toothpick inserted in cake center come out clean.
12. Take out of oven and cool it off.
Baking complete
Ingredients for frosting:
1. 400ml whipping cream (I prefer using dairy free whipping cream, its soya based and good for health, as it does not have cholesterol)
2. Food color of your choice.
Method:
1. scrape of top of cake, if cake top is not even (I have best recipe for such leftover cake :) ),
so that cake surface is even.
Cakes with their tops scraped off
2.Whip cream with food color until soft peaks are formed.
3. Apply whipped cream with flat spatula all over the cake, in thin even layer.
4. Finely chop 25gms of pistachios and sprinkle on top.
Cake ready with frosting
That's it. Make sure you keep cake in cool place as cream frosting may melt. If you want to add any fruit pulp, chocolate sauce you can add it in step no. 7.
Enjoy :)
