This pistachio raspberry cake features three fluffy raspberry cake layers filled with pure pistachio cream and fresh raspberries, all enrobed in a luscious pistachio French buttercream. The nutty richness of pistachio cream paired with bright raspberries creates a beautifully balanced flavor that tastes both elegant and fresh. Perfect for birthdays, spring gatherings, or special occasions, this pistachio and raspberry cake is just as stunning as it is delicious. If you love bakery-style cakes with bold flavor and a soft, tender crumb, this raspberry cake with pistachio buttercream is guaranteed to impress!
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Why you'll love this Pistachio Raspberry Cake
- Fluffy Fresh Raspberry Cake: This raspberry cake is incredibly soft and fluffy, making it the perfect base for a fresh and fun spring dessert.
- Raspberry and Pistachio Combo: This combination creates an elegant and fresh flavor profile with bright pink and green colors that represent spring so well.
- Creamy French Buttercream: French buttercream is made with a base of egg yolks, making it almost custard-like. The addition of pistachio cream takes to another level of decadence.
For more green colored spring recipes, try my Matcha Cake, Pistachio Macarons, and Matcha Amaretti Cookies.
Ingredient Notes
- Flour: Use a high quality, unbleached all-purpose flour.
- Fat: To make this cake super moist while maintaining that classic buttery flavor, this recipe uses a butter-oil combo. I prefer to use light tasting olive oil, but you can also use canola or vegetable oil. For both the cake and the frosting, use a high quality European-style butter, as it has a higher fat content than American-style butter, and fat equals flavor!
- Eggs: This cake uses both egg whites and yolks separately. Whipped egg whites folded into the batter create a velvety texture, as well as allow the pink raspberry color to come through. The frosting has an egg yolk base, so be sure to save the yolks.
- Raspberries: Fresh raspberries add such a beautiful flavor and color to this cake!
- Pistachio Cream: It is a little pricey, but store-bought pistachio cream is the most heavenly thing you'll ever eat! I used this pistachio cream, but you can use any brand as long as it contains at least 35% pistachios!
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and individual quantities.
Step by Step Instructions
Here are step by step photos and instructions on how to make this pistachio raspberry cake recipe! For the full ingredient list and method, see the recipe card at the end of this post.
Make the cake batter
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut up the butter into small cubes and add to the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until it resembles wet sand. Add the oil, milk, raspberry purée, and vanilla, and mix until just combined. In a separate medium bowl, whip the egg whites to medium peaks. Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter with a rubber spatula until fully combined.
Bake the cake layers
Divide the cake batter between the prepared cake pans. Wrap the cake strips around the outside the pans. Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the cakes start to pull away from the sides. Immediately turn the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the pistachio French buttercream
Whisk the egg yolks and 24g (2 tbsp) of sugar in a medium bowl on high speed until thick and foamy (about 3 minutes). In a small saucepan, bring the remaining 100g (½ cup) of granulated sugar and water to a boil, or until it reaches 240 degrees F. Slowly drizzle the sugar syrup into the bowl while simultaneously whisking the egg yolks. Add the butter to the mixture a few cubes at a time. Lastly, add the pistachio cream and green food gel (optional) and mix until completely smooth.
Decorate & enjoy!
Place the first cake layer on the cake stand. Pipe a dam of buttercream around the edge of the cake. Fill the center with a thin layer of pistachio cream, and then top with torn fresh raspberries. Add the second cake layer and repeat. Add the third cake layer and spread an even layer (crumb coat) of buttercream all over the outside of the cake. Place the cake in the fridge for 15 minutes. Spread a thicker, even layer of buttercream all over the cake. With the remaining buttercream, pipe dollops all over the cake. Run a spoon under hot water for a few seconds, wipe dry, then smear the dollops as shown in the photo. Finish the cake with a sprinkling of freeze dried raspberry powder and fresh raspberries.
Expert Baking Tips
- To make the raspberry purée. Start with a 12oz container of fresh raspberries. Purée them in a blender, then pour through a fine mesh sieve, weighing it out to 227g (1 cup).
- Use cake strips to create flat cake layers. Soak these wilton cake strips in ice water before starting the cake batter. Just before baking, wrap the cake strips around the pan. The cold temperature on the outside of the cake will prevent the edges from baking faster than the center, resulting in an evenly baked flat cake.
Recipe FAQs
The reverse creaming method is the process of beating room temperature butter into the dry ingredients. The fat coats the flour and inhibits the gluten from developing. With this method, the cake is sure to bake up flat without becoming too golden around the edges or on top. In contrast, the creaming method involves beating the sugar and butter together, which adds a lot of extra air into the batter. This is a great method for other bakes, but not with a white cake. With the reverse creaming method, the cake will bake up with an ultra fine, velvety crumb.
Cakes may dome in the middle when they bake because the outside bakes faster than the center, so the center has more time to rise. This is not ideal for layer cakes, because it is a pain to have to trim away the top of the cake. The best way to ensure your cake layers bake up flat rather than doming is to use cake strips. Soak the cake strips in cold water before wrapping around the outside of the cake pan. This will ensure that the outside of the cake does not bake faster than the center, resulting in an evenly baked, flat cake.
If you don't have cake strips on hand, you can make a DIY version! Dip a few paper towels in ice water and squeeze out some of the water so it isn't dripping. Fold them up so they're the same width as your cake pan, then wrap them in aluminum foil. Wrap your DIY cake strips around the sides of the pan just before baking.
Store this cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. You can also wrap individual slices with plastic wrap, place in a freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months.
Baking in Grams
All of the recipes on this blog are carefully developed with gram measurements so you can easily recreate them in your own kitchen with success. Volume measurements are extremely inaccurate and leave room for significant errors. Not all measuring cups are made equally, so your one cup of flour will be different from my one cup of flour. By providing precise measurements in grams (aside from minor ingredients, which are given in tsp/tbsp), you can make these recipes accurately and with less cleanup! All you need is this kitchen scale.
If this still isn't enough to convince you, I have provided volume measurements in the recipe card. If you are interested in understanding the conversions, this is the best conversion chart.
But trust me, once you try baking in grams you'll never turn back!
Happy baking! x
Other spring recipes to try
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📖 Recipe
Pistachio Raspberry Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
For the fresh raspberry cake:
- 270 g (2 ¼ cups) all-purpose flour
- 250 g (1 ¼ cups) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 113 g (8 tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temp
- 100 g (½ cup) neutral oil
- 113 g (½ cup) whole milk, room temp
- 227 g (1 cup) raspberry purée, poured through a fine mesh sieve to remove seeds
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 egg whites
- 2 drops pink food gel, optional
For the pistachio French buttercream:
- 6 egg yolks
- 124 g (½ cup + 2 tbsp) granulated sugar, divided
- 42 g (3 tablespoon) water
- 227 g (16 tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temp
- 80 g (¼ cup) pistachio cream
- 2 drops green food gel, optional
For assembly:
- Pistachio cream
- Fresh raspberries
- Freeze dried raspberry powder
Instructions
For the fresh raspberry cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and line three 6" cake pans with parchment paper.
- Soak cake strips in ice water.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- Cut up the butter into small cubes and add to the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until it resembles wet sand.
- Add the oil, milk, raspberry purée, and vanilla, and mix until just combined.
- In a separate medium bowl, whip the egg whites to medium peaks.
- Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter with a rubber spatula until fully combined.
- Divide the cake batter between the prepared cake pans. Wrap the cake strips around the outside the pans.
- Bake for about 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the cakes start to pull away from the sides. Immediately turn the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
For the pistachio French buttercream:
- Place the egg yolks and 24g (2 tbsp) of sugar in a medium bowl or a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until thick and foamy (about 3 minutes) while you heat the sugar and water.
- In a small saucepan, place the remaining 100g (½ cup) of granulated sugar and water over low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil, or until it reaches 240 degrees F.
- While the egg yolks are still whisking on medium speed, slowly drizzle the sugar syrup into the bowl. Continue mixing until the mixture has cooled down to room temperature.
- Add the butter to the mixture a few cubes at a time, allowing them to fully incorporate before adding more.
- Lastly, add the pistachio cream and green food gel (optional). Continue mixing on low speed until the buttercream is completely smooth.
For assembly:
- Place the first cake layer on the cake stand. Pipe a dam of buttercream around the edge of the cake. Fill the center with a thin layer of pistachio cream, and then top with torn fresh raspberries.
- Add the second cake layer and repeat.
- Add the third cake layer and spread an even layer (crumb coat) of buttercream all over the outside of the cake. Place the cake in the fridge for 15-20 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the fridge and spread a thicker, even layer of buttercream all over the cake. With the remaining buttercream, pipe dollops all over the cake. Run a spoon under hot water for a few seconds, wipe dry, then smear the dollops as shown in the photos above.
- Finish the cake with a sprinkling of freeze dried raspberry powder and fresh raspberries.
Notes
- To make the raspberry purée. Start with a 12oz container of fresh raspberries. Purée them in a blender, then pour through a fine mesh sieve, weighing it out to 227g (1 cup).
- Use cake strips to create flat cake layers. Soak these wilton cake strips in ice water before starting the cake batter. Just before baking, wrap the cake strips around the pan. The cold temperature on the outside of the cake will prevent the edges from baking faster than the center, resulting in an evenly baked flat cake.
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