Week 39: Birthday Cupcakes: Pistachio Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

My sister requested Pistachio Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting for her birthday...which isn't until January 25th...but we can't get together on that day. The first thing I do is think about going to this cake supply place my boss told me about in Laurel, MD, called Cakes Plus! I was so excited to have a reason to go there. So, at lunch on Friday I popped in my Jetta and off we went! When we got out of the car...you won't believe this...the place is in a shopping center right next to Kohl's...we could smell cakes baking. It was so cool! I found so much cool stuff...beautiful candy flowers of all kinds, books, frostings, glow lite candles, more stuff than I knew existed. They bake wedding cakes, party cakes, cupcakes, and more. That's where I got these cute little pansies. I also bought some roses to use on Valentine's Day! I had a very hard time getting out of there...

My sister's birthday dinner was at my Mom's house in Prince Frederick, MD, on Saturday late afternoon. I spent the morning making the cupcakes after I found the only recipe that seemed to exist on the web (none of my books had a recipe for pistachio cupcakes). The one I found was called St. Patrick's Day Cake. It called for pistachio instant pudding which meant a trip to...you know where...the grocery store! I had to pick up my Diet-to-Go stuff so I went to Wintergreen Shopping Center where I pick that up and they have a Food Lion there that I am growing to love. It has the most different stuff for baking. It's the only place I've found unwrapped hershey kisses...they actually are packaged this way. I've never found them at Giant or Safeway. I even found Ancho Chile Pepper there after I had made my cupcakes! I always end up taking too much time in the grocery store, so by the time I got back, time was becoming an issue for me.


The only thing I changed about the recipe is that I added a cup of chopped pistachios to the mix. One non normal thing I did was for one batch I used a pan that makes square cupcakes...I think it's really for muffin-type things. I got it for Christmas. The square cupcakes turned out great. The one drawback was that they were pretty big...the amount of batter was like two cupcakes worth to fill one square. Other than that, these cupcakes were really easy to make. Then I made my favorite vanilla buttercream frosting by Magnolia. It's always the best there is! It is easy to decorate with, too. And, it has just the right consistancy for the swirls. I also decided that these would be the cupcakes I would take to the office on Monday, so I made two batches of them and the frosting.

The recipe calls for mini-chocolate chips and I wondered why. I figured it out when I tasted the cupcakes...pistachio doesn't have much flavor...even with the added real pistachio...but the little bit of chocolate really gives just the punch it needs. And, the green color is a very nice addition! I call this photo "bite me." I posted more photos on my flickr account in this SET.

The recipe is HERE

10 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:03 PM

    will you make me cupcakes for my birthday?

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  2. Anonymous11:30 PM

    Love the cup cakes! They are so pretty! Tell me? Did you do any shopping at Kohl's? It's my favorite store. I loved it so much that I just had to get a job there. Now I get my clothes for almost free! Ha ha! (okay, that is where my pay check goes!) Love your web site! Keep up the good work! Sorry about your uggs. Silly puppy!

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  3. Glenda: Actually, one of my favorite stores is Target!

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  4. Anonymous2:14 PM

    These are interesting. I love pistachios and chocolate. Your buttercream frosting is without peer. Much praise for the pretty purple pansies.

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  5. Anonymous3:42 PM

    Deliciously awesome post! I'm getting ready to move to a state where Food Lion reigns supreme. (I only have Giant and Safeway near me here in No VA)I hope my Food Lion will have good baking stuff, too.

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  6. Surcie: Hold on...no one's allowed to leave this area...where the heck are u going? I had visions that we would bump into each other at Tysons someday! Where are you moving to?

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  7. Anonymous6:06 PM

    Hi, can we Please see the recipe? I'm dying to try them. You are totally an inspiration and I should get off my b*tt and do some baking, too.

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  8. Anonymous6:27 PM

    Hi! I love your blog and have told several of my friends about it, you rock! I have a similar cupcake obsession, lol! Anyway, just wanted to mention, there IS a recipe for Pistachio Cupcakes in the book 125 Best Cupcake Recipes by Julie Hasson. Have never tried it though. Bet yours were great!
    Andrea

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  9. I have a friend that works in the decorating department at Cakes Plus. Isn't it a fun place??? I always spend too much in there.

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  10. Hi - they sounds wonderful - can we have the recipe ... pleeeeaasse...

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