Royal Icing For Pistachio Layer Cake Recipes

PISTACHIO CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease and lightly flour three 9-inch cake pans.
• Pulse the pistachios in a food processor until ground up into very fine crumbs. See photo above for a visual. You'll have about 1 and 1/2 cups of crumbs. (If you have more than that, set aside for garnish.)
• Pour 1 and 1/2 cups of pistachio crumbs in a large bowl. Whisk in the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the egg whites on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, pour in the milk (and the green food coloring, if using) and mix just until combined. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be slightly thick.
• Pour batter evenly into cake pans. Bake for around 21-23 minutes or until the cakes are baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it's done. Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
• Prepare the cream cheese frosting (see note below).
• Using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Discard (or crumble over ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand, cake turntable, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer and evenly cover the top with more frosting. Top with the third cake layer. Spread the frosting all over the top and sides. (I used a bench scraper to smooth out the sides.) Decorate with garnishes, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 30-45 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake keep its shape when cutting.
• Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days.

PISTACHIO LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment; butter parchment and dust with flour, tapping out excess. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter with sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla and beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until incorporated, scraping down bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with milk in two batches.
• Divide batter evenly among prepared pans. Smooth tops with an offset spatula. Bake until tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into centers comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool in pans 10 minutes, then invert cakes onto a wire rack, remove parchment, reinvert, and let cool completely. With a serrated knife, trim tops of cakes so they're level.
• Stir together pastry cream and 1/3 cup buttercream. Spread pastry-cream mixture over one cake layer and top with second cake layer, cut-side down. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes. Spread about 1 cup of buttercream in a thin layer on top of sides of cake (to prevent crumbs from pulling through final layer of frosting; it's okay if crumb coating is uneven, as it will be covered up later). Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Frost cake with remaining buttercream and refrigerate until icing is firm, at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.
• Use a 2-inch round biscuit cutter to mark an overlapping circle pattern around top edge of cake. Place royal icing in a piping bag fitted with a small round tip (such as Ateco #2). Pipe overlapping circles, using markings as a guide. Use a small damp brush to correct any wobbly piping. Cake can be stored in refrigerator up to 1 day; bring to room temperature 1 hour before serving.

ROYAL ICING FOR PISTACHIO LAYER CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir egg white vigorously with rubber spatula until frothy. Add confectioners' sugar, a little at a time, stirring until smooth, until icing is thick and pipeable. Adjust consistency with additional sugar or water by the drop. Icing can be stored in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 3 days; bring to room temperature before using.

PISTACHIO PUDDING CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, soda and oil; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. Stir in walnuts., Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely., In a large bowl, beat the cream, milk, pudding mix and confectioners' sugar on high until stiff peaks form. Frost cake. Sprinkle with walnuts. Refrigerate until serving.

PISTACHIO CAKE AND FROSTING

Steps:

• Blend cake mix, eggs, oil, sprite ( I use 7-Up) and one box of pudding mix. Beat with a mixer for 2 minutes.
• Pour into a 9x13-inch pan.
• Bake 350 for 35-45 minutes. Cool completely.
• For frosting, stir one box of pudding mix with milk, then fold in cool whip.
• Spread on cooled cake.
• Keep refrigerated.

LEMON-FROSTED PISTACHIO CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8-inch nonstick cake pan with parchment paper.
• In a mixer fitted with a paddle, cream together the butter and superfine sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the ground pistachios and almonds. Add the orange juice, orange zest and rosewater, and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour; do not overmix.
• Scoop the mixture into the cake pan, and bake until the top is firm and a light golden brown, about 40 minutes. Lightly cover the top of the cake with foil and continue baking until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out dry, about 10 minutes. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for several minutes, then remove and cool on a rack.
• When the cake is cool, make the icing: mix the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice together in a small bowl, and pour over the cake. If desired, decorate with crystallized rose petals and pistachios. Allow the icing to set for 30 minutes before serving.