I LOVE nuts !
Especially pistachio .
Have you tried grinding it in a food processor ? Seriously ! hahaha Ahhhh the smell , it's just really incredible ^-^"
So when I saw this recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book , I knew I had to bake it. It's pistachio overload and I'm in pistachio heaven lol
I'm not planning to iced these but I still have some cream sitting around so I made half of the icing recipe . Sadly , I added too much cream and the result is not drippy but still okay though . Iced or not , the cupcake itself tastes FANTASTIC !
I halve the recipe but just used a generous cup of sugar , I also used salted pistachios and a pinch of salt and made 15 cupcakes . My cupcakes sizes are not uniform . Oh , I over baked some , again ! tsk tsk
Recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes
Makes 34
1 cup unsalted shelled pistachios
1 1/4 cups ( 2 1/2 sticks ) unsalted butter , at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese , at room temp
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs , at room temp
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon coarse salt
3/4 cup coarsely chopped salted pistachios
* Preheat oven to 325°F/160°C . Line standard muffin tin with paper liners . In a food processor , grind shelled nuts to a paste .
* With an electric mixer on medium-high speed , beat butter , cream cheese and pistachio paste until light and fluffy , about 3 minutes . Reduce speed to med-low , gradually add sugar ; beat until smooth , scraping the sides of the bowl as needed . Add eggs , one at a time , beating until each is incorporated . Beat in vanilla . Reduce speed to low and add in flour and salt , beating until just combined . Fold in chopped nuts by hand .
* Divide batter evenly among lined cups , filling about three-quarters full . Bake for about 30 minutes or until cake tester inserted comes out clean .
Drippy icing :
1 cup plus 3 T icing sugar , sifted
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 1/2 pistachio slivers or chopped pistachios to decorate
* Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until smooth . Use immediately .