Vegan Pistachio Sheet Cake with a real, pistachio flavour! Deliciously moist, fluffy and soft pistachio cake with real pistachio nuts, topped with a vanilla dairy-free cream cheese frosting and more pistachio nuts. Free from dairy, egg, no artificial colours or flavours.
Vegan Pistachio Sheet Cake
I absolutely love pistachios and the pistachio flavour. Unfortunately lots of desserts lack the real and true pistachio flavour, sometimes the flavour can taste extremely fake which is quite underwhelming. BEHOLD, this is where this cake comes in. This pistachio sheet cake is the BEST EVER pistachio cake you’ll ever have. In fact, it’s that good… it’s quickly become one of my family’s favourite vegan cakes. It’s packed with ALL the real flavours of pistachio nuts, along with being soft, slightly salty, moist and oh so nutty! I honestly don’t know how to describe the texture as it’s just so perfect. It’s light, nutty and literally melts in your mouth!
Why make this vegan pistachio cake?
This cake is honestly the best pistachio cakes you’ll ever try. It’s a real showstopper and perfect for special occasions, summer gatherings / BBQ’s or a really classy affair. I’ve listed my top 10 reasons why you NEED to make this cake. If you LOVE this cake, check out my Vegan Carrot Cake Sheet Cake.
- 100% vegan – Doesn’t contain any animals derived ingredients.
- No artificial colours- The green is au natural and comes from the pistachio nuts.
- No artificial flavours – Again, the cake only contains real pistachio nuts which beautifully flavour the cake and frosting topping. So gooood!!
- Easy to make – Sheet cakes are always some of my favourites, they’re easy to prep, make and bake!
- 1 pan – It’s only one simple later, meaning less equipment and less washing up!!
- Cream cheese frosting – The frosting is a dairy-free cream cheese flavoured with vanilla bean. It’s truly scrumptious!
- Texture is unbelievable- The cake is light, moist, soft and fluffy with a slight texture from the nuts, paired with the silky smooth cream cheese frosting, the cake literally melts in your mouth.
- Minimal decoration – To keep things simple the cake is decorated with a sprinkle of chopped pistachios. It adds a gorgeous colour and crunch.
- Easy to store – Unlike a tall layer cake, this cake is flat and easy to store. Simply cut it into servings / squares.
- Pistachio heaven – Simply if you love pistachios, this cake is for you. You just need to make it to find out for yourself why my friends and family rate it so high!!
What you need to make a vegan pistachio cake:
Like most vegan cakes, you’ll need a few staple ingredients, but thankfully most of them are pantry / kitchen cupboard staples that you probably already have to hand. You can find the full ingredients list and quantities in the recipe card below.
Ingredients for the cake:
- Dairy-free milk
- Apple cider vinegar
- Caster sugar
- Self raising flour
- Baking powder
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Sunflower oil
- Almond extract
- Pistachio nuts
Wait…. there’s more. The pistachio cake is then topped with the most ‘melt in the mouth’, buttery and slightly tart cream cheese frosting. I even finished off the cake with a sprinkle if chopped pistachio nuts. The green colour of the nuts really pop on the white frosting.
Ingredients for the cream cheese frosting
- Dairy-free cream cheese
- Dairy-free block butter
- Vanilla
- Dairy-free milk
- Pistachio nuts
How to make a Vegan Pistachio Sheet Cake
This is a very easy and basic pistachio cake recipe with relatively simple ingredients, that create a real wow factor! Make sure to follow these step-by-step instructions for a perfect vegan pistachio cake!
- Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C and line a 8×8 loose base square tin with grease proof paper.
- Cake batter
Mix together the dairy-free milk with apple cider vinegar. Set aside to curdle. During this time, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda. Pour the curdled ‘buttermilk’ into the dry ingredients along with the oil and chopped pistachio nuts, fold everything together.
- Bake
Pour the cake batter into the lined tin, using the back of a spoon or spatula to get the batter flat / even. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the sponge is risen & springy to the touch.
- Cool
Remove the cake from the oven, place on a wire rack and allow it to cool in the tin.
- Frosting
Whip up the dairy-free butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer or white a hand mixer until creamy, then add in the icing sugar and vanilla. You might have to add in a splash of dairy-free milk to loosen it up. Spoon the frosting onto the cold cake, spreading it out with a spatula.
- Decoration and serving
Sprinkle chopped pistachios over the top of the frosting. Use a sharp knife to cut the cake into squares, serve and enjoy!
How to store a pistachio cake
The un-iced cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight / sealed container for up to 3 days.
I don’t recommend storing the cake at room temperature with the frosting on, as cream cheese has to be refrigerated. Store the iced cake in an air tight / sealed container in the fridge and allow to come to room temperature before tucking in. Best enjoyed within 3-4 days of making.
If you make, and love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below. Thank you & happy baking! Make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram and Facebook! And if you want to pin this recipe for later, you can use the button on the recipe card, above or below this post, or on any of the photos. Happy baking all!
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Vegan Pistachio Sheet Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8–10 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Homemade Vegan Pistachio Sheet Cake made with ground pistachios and dairy-free cream cheese frosting. The perfect subtle pistachio flavour!
Ingredients
Ingredients for the cake
- 250ml of dairy-free milk
- 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
- 100g of caster sugar
- 250g of self raising flour
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
- 70ml of sunflower oil
- 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
- 100g of ground pistachio nuts
Ingredients for the frosting
- 80g of dairy-free butter
- 30g of dairy-free cream cheese
- 230g of icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract / vanilla paste
- Splash of dairy-free milk if needed
- 50g of pistachio nuts (roughly chopped)
Instructions
Method (Cake)
- Preheat your oven to 180ºC fan and line an 8 x 8 inch square cake tin with greaseproof paper. Allow the paper to hang over the tin slightly, this makes it easier to remove the cake when baked.
- Add the pistachio nuts into a blender / food processor and whizz up until ground.
- In a bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined. Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.
- In a large mixing bowl, sift the sugar, flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Mix well to combine. Add the oil and almond extract into the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix just to combine. Fold in the ground pistachio nuts.
- Spoon the batter into the lined tin. Level it out with the back of a spoon or offset spatula.
- Place the cake into the middle of the preheated oven and bake for around 25-30 minutes. You will know it is done when you put a knife or skewer down the middle of the cake and it comes out clean and it’s springy to the touch. If batter comes off on the skewer, it needs more time to bake. To prevent burning, top the cake with some greaseproof paper then return back into the oven.
- Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes then carefully transfer onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool fully before frosting. You can even place the cake in a sealed container once cool then frost the day after. It’s a very light sponge so be careful with it when removing from the tin.
Method (frosting)
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the dairy-free butter and cream cheese, whip until creamy. I use a stand mixer with a balloon whisk attachment, a hand mixer will work great too.
- Sift in the icing sugar and vanilla. Whip on high speed for a couple of minutes to incorporate it. Add a splash of dairy-free milk to get it to a smooth consistency.
- Spoon the frosting onto the top of the cake. Using a pallet knife, carefully spread and swirl the white frosting over the entire cake.
- Decorate with a sprinkle of roughly chopped pistachios (optional).
- Slice and enjoy!
Notes
To store: Keep this cake stored in a sealed container in the fridge. Leave at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before serving. Best eaten within 3 days of making. Un-iced cake can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature for 2 days. Always stored iced cakes (especially with cream cheese frosting) in the fridge.
What dairy-free butter to use? My favourites are Naturli Vegan Block, Naturli Spread and Flora Plant Based Block Butter. All work amazingly in vegan buttercream!
What dairy-free cream cheese to use? My favourites are Violife Original Flavour Creamy and supermarkets own branded vegan cream cheese.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
- Category: Cakes and layer cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Made this for my Dad’s birthday he said this was the best cake I’ve ever made!
Author
OMGG, i am soooo happy you all enjoyed, especially your dad! Sending him BIG birthday wishes!!! xx
This was the most delicious cake I have ever made or eaten. I can’t stop eating it!!
Thank you so much for the recipe XX
This cake looks lovely! I just have a quick question. What is the purpose of the baking powder and baking soda since you’re already using self raising flour? I’ve never seen a recipe that uses both. And can I use regular all-purpose flour with some baking powder/soda instead? Thank you. 🙂