If you have a box of your favorite cake mix and a package of pudding then you can make this easy to make pistachio cake recipe that everyone will love. Cake mix with pudding makes this delicious cake moist and tender. It makes your cake taste you just got it from the local bakery. Serve it alone or top it with pistachio frosting.
Pistachio Cake Recipe
(cake mix with pudding)
Adding pudding mix to your cake mix helps to create a denser, more moist cake. It seems more like a cake that you get at your local bakery rather than a homemade cake made with a boxed mix cake.
This recipe also has swapped out the liquid oil found in most boxed cake mix recipes for melted butter. This adds even more flavor to the finished cake.
Pistachio Cake Ingredients:
- Box of Cake Mix – I used a yellow cake mix for this recipe but you can easily swap it out for your favorite butter cake, white cake or vanilla cake mix. I used Duncan Hines brand cake mix. Whatever brand you choose you’ll want a boxed mix that’s at least 15 ounces of cake mix.
- Instant Pistachio Pudding Mix – Use Instant pudding mix only. Do not use the type of pudding mix that requires you to cook it. Most boxed pudding mixes are about 3.4 ounces in size. You’ll need 2 boxes of pudding mix for this recipe. One for the cake and one for the frosting.
- Eggs – use large eggs for this recipe.
- Butter – butter adds delicious flavor to this cake. You can swap it out for another type of solid fat (shortening, margarine, etc) or even liquid oil (vegetable oil, canola oil, etc) if desired. See the FAQ section below for more information on swapping out the butter.
- Milk – I used whole milk in this recipe but it works well with other types of milk and even milk alternatives (almond milk, soy milk, etc).
- Green Food Coloring – this is optional. It adds a bit more coloring to the finished cake. The cake will get some color from the pudding mix but adding a few drops of food color really gives it a nice color.
- Whipped Topping – this is used to create a nice, light frosting for the cake.
- Pistachios – I like to add some chopped pistachios to the top of the cake as a garnish. If desired you can also add some chopped nuts to the cake batter.
How to make Pistachio Cake (cake mix with pudding added)
To make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
Spray a 9″x 13″ baking dish with nonstick spray.
Step 1: In a medium bowl combine the dry cake mix with dry instant pistachio pudding. Mix these together until combined.
Step 2: Then add in eggs, butter and milk. Stir just until combined or blend with an electric mixer on medium speed until just combined.
Step 3: Stir in about 6 to 8 drops of green food coloring until fully incorporated.
Step 4: Pour into prepared baking dish. You can use a 9 x 13 baking dish or try using a Bundt pan to make a pretty Bundt cake.
Want to create a layer cake? Then use two 9 inch round cake pans instead. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Follow the directions on your cake mix box for the time needed to bake the cake in round pans.
Step 5: Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted in comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool completely before topping with frosting.
To make frosting:
Step 1: Pour the pistachio pudding mix into a mixing bowl. Add in ½ cup cold milk. Whisk until combined.
Step 2: Stir in the thawed whipped topping.
Step 3: To give the frosting a more intense green color add a few drops (4 or 5 drops) of food coloring if desired and blend in well.
Step 4: Spread frosting onto cooled cake. Sprinkle the top with the chopped pistachios.
Serve this great dessert as it is or try it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.
What does adding pudding to the cake mix do?
Adding a package of instant pudding mix to your cake mix helps to change the flavor and texture of the cake. The added pudding makes the finished cake moist and dense. Depending upon the pudding mix that is used it also gives it added flavor to the finished cake. You will be adding the dry mix directly into the cake mix. Don’t prepare the pudding mix first.
Which is the best boxed cake mix to use?
Just about any brand of cake mix will work. Look for one that is 15 to 18 ounces in size. You’ll want to skip the brands that have pudding in the mix already. Adding more pudding changes the texture of the cake once it’s cooked. To me it seems to be more sticky rather than dense. The center of the cake also doesn’t seem to rise as much. I usually skip over these brands and go with one without pudding in the mix.
Choose a light flavored cake mix so the pistachio flavor will stand out. Yellow cake mix works well as does white cake mix, butter cake mix and vanilla cake mix.
What size cake mix should I use?
Most store brand cake mixes will be about 15 to 18 ounces. These are the perfect amount of cake mix to go with the amount of liquids in the cake.
If the cake mix is smaller then the batter will be too wet to cook correctly.
If the cake mix is much larger then the batter will be difficult to mix as it does not have enough liquid.
Can I use water instead of milk in this cake mix recipe?
Adding milk instead of water helps to boost the flavor of the cake. If you don’t have milk on hand I would stay by swapping it with a milk substitute. You can even use half water and half cream (heavy or light). Buttermilk is also a great substitute. If you are out of these ingredients you can use water in place of the milk. The cake will still taste good. It will not be as rich as a cake made with milk.
You should not swap out the milk in the frosting unless it is to replace it with some type of non dairy milk. This will affect the texture of the frosting.
Do you have to use food coloring?
No you don’t. The green food coloring helps to boost the color (pale green) which comes from the pistachio pudding mix. Add the food coloring if desired. You can use liquid food coloring or even natural food colorings. Watkins sells a set of natural liquid food coloring. Spirulina is used to create the green color. Check out the Watkins natural food colorings here on Amazon.
Do I need to add pistachios to the cake?
The pudding mix already has some tiny bits of pistachio nuts. If you love pistachios then you can still add some additional chopped nuts to the mix as well as use them as a garnish for the top of the cake. If you don’t have any on hand, you can skip adding extra nuts to the cake.
If you like this great recipe you might also enjoy some of these easy to make go-to recipes:
Pineapple Coconut Cake (made with a box cake mix)
Cake Mix Bar Cookies With Chocolate Chips
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Pistachio Cake
Equipment
- 9 x 13 baking pan
- Large mixing bowl
- Mixing spoon
- Non stick spray
Ingredients
For The Cake
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1 box pistachio pudding
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup butter melted
- 1 cup milk
For The Frosting
- 1 box pistachio pudding
- 1/2 cup milk
- 8 ounce whipped topping
Instructions
To Make The Cake
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
- Spray a 9"x 13" baking dish with nonstick spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine dry cake mix with dry instant pistachio pudding. Mix those together until combined.
- Then add in eggs, oil and milk. Stir just until combined.
- Stir in about 6 to 8 drops of green food coloring until fully incorporated. Pour into prepared baking dish.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes. If you insert a toothpick into it, it should come out clean when done.
- Allow cake to cool completely before making frosting.
To Make The Frosting
- Pour instant pistachio pudding mix into a mixing bowl. Add in ½ cup cold milk. Stir until combined.
- Stir in the thawed whipped topping.
- To give the frosting a more intense green color add a few drops (4 or 5) of food coloring and blend in well.
- Spread frosting onto cooled cake. Sprinkle the top with chopped pistachios.
Nutrition
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Baked Crack Chicken aka Ranch Chicken
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