Pistachio Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream is a small cake we call Cutie Cakes. Moist and pistachio nut filled two layer 3″ round cakes makes the perfect dessert for two or four people. The cake is filled and frosted with White Chocolate Buttercream the perfect not so sweet frosting. White Chocolate is made with Milk Boy White Chocolate which melts beautifully and flavors the buttercream. This recipe will make 3-4″ cakes, or 1-3″ two layer cake or 1-6″ cake. Lots of options including 6 cupcakes. Small batch baking at it’s finest.

What is a Cutie Cake

Cutie Cakes also known as lunch box cakes, bento, or small batch baking begin with a 3 or 4″ inch two layer stacked frosted cake. Whether you like square, round or shaped they will serve 2-4 guests. This recipe features one 3-inch two layer round cake spread with White Chocolate Buttercream between the layers and outside of cake. The cake itself has ground shelled pistachios and one drop leaf green food gel to give the cake a lovely enhanced pistachio color. To decorate the cake, piped swirls or dollops outline the outer edge of the small cake then sprinkled with reserved ground pistachios.

Why the Cutie Cake?

The inspiration for these small batch cakes came from having a husband who likes a treat after meals. Treat meaning just a bite or two of something flavorful and satisfying. So seeing small cakes 2″, 3″ and 4″ in bakery sections of local grocery stores as well as Baking for Two, Small Batch baking on websites and books… it was time to create smaller versions of our favorite recipes as well as develop new flavors and recipes for those who just one a bite of sweetness after meals or for special occasions.

Benefits of Small Batch, Baking for Two, Cutie Cakes

• Bake ahead dessert that can be frozen for future small bite dessert cakes-smaller wraps for freezer and when cakes are thawed they are very moist.
• Quick to make, bake and frost when you want a small bite.
• Less desserts but still something to satisfy desire for desserts.
• Bite size servings.
• Serves 2-4 people with small cut pieces that are adorable to eat.
• They are bigger than a cupcake. Cute cake with colorful layers, just like a big cake only mini.
• Recipes are made from scratch no cake mixes.
• Made with basic baking pantry ingredients, cake or all purpose flour, sugar, confectioner’s sugar, cocoa, extracts, leavening.
• Use less ingredients  and less baking time because it’s smaller.
• Great way to teach kiddos how to bake, which is becoming a lost art. (We need to turn this around).
• Great for special occasion bakes, to take to friends and neighbors. 
• Delicious mini cakes to make, bake, decorate, fun to eat, serve and give.

How to Make Pistachio Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream

 

Make Pistachio Cake

1.Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare 2-3″ round cake pans with cooking spray, line pans with parchment rounds, place on baking sheet. Set aside.

2.In bowl of food processor with steel blade, process pistachios until lightly ground. Reserve 1/4 cup for garnish. Place 1/2 cup in mixing bowl.

3.In medium mixing bowl with ground pistachios, add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.

4.In bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream together  on high speed the sugar and vegetable oil until well mixed about 2 minutes. Add egg whites, sour cream and extracts, beat on medium speed until combined.

5. With mixer on low speed add dry ingredients that includes the ground pistachios to wet ingredients, beat until well combined, add whole milk and 1 drop leaf green  food gel. Continue to beat mixture to combine about 1 minute.

6.Pour batter between two-3″ prepared cake pans, (190 grams or 3/4 cup) per pan. Place pans on large baking sheet for stability on oven rack.  Bake in preheated  350° F oven for 17-20 minutes. Cake exterior will bake brown in color. Allow cakes to cool, remove from pans, remove parchment paper. At this point if you want to wrap and freeze for future use, freeze up to 60 days.

White Chocolate Buttercream

1.Chop white chocolate bar in small pieces and place in small microwave safe mixing bowl. Melt chocolate at 20 second intervals until soft enough to stir and completely melt. Allow to cool slightly but keep melted for buttercream.

2. Add room temperature butter to melted white chocolate, creaming together until smooth, gradually add confectioner’s sugar, extracts and salt. Turn mixer on medium speed as not to get air bubbles in buttercream.

Cake Assembly

1.On a 4″ cake board, place dollop of buttercream on center of board. Place the first cake layer on top of the board. Add a layer of buttercream as filling, add second cake layer. Make sure cake is pressed gently together and level.

2.Crumb coat the cake with white chocolate buttercream, place in refrigerator for 30 minutes to let buttercream set until firm. Frost cake with another coat of white chocolate buttercream as desired.

3.Fit disposable piping bag with tip # 4 B or other large shell design. Fill bag with buttercream. Pipe large dollops or swirls of buttercream around outer edge of frosted cake . Garnish cake with reserved ground pistachios on top and sides of cake.  Serve cake day is made for best results.

Here’s the recipe for Pistachio Cake with White Chocolate Buttercream Cutie Cake. Enjoy!

Hope you will make this little cake. You will enjoy it.

 

Print

Other Ideas You Might Like to Try:

Easy Pistachio Swirl Cupcake Recipe

Pistachio Shamrock Pound Cake Recipe