Cardamom Pistachio Loaf

Pistachio and cardamom together might be one of my favorite combinations ever. Like peanut butter and jelly! Or chocolate chip cookies and milk! Or pumpkin spice and fall! It. just. works.

This Pistachio Loaf was born out of my love for Pinch of Yum’s Pistachio Loaf and my need to recreate it here with ingredients I can get in South Asia. For example, the most common sugar here is a large grain sugar — bad for baking because it doesn’t melt at the same temperature as your other ingredients. Ask me how I know (but the chocolate sludge beneath what was supposed to be brownies sure was delicious!). Anyways, I digress.

Like I said, one of the benefits is that you can use all items most South Asian homes have in their pantry — except maybe the shelled pistachios (by far the most expensive ingredient). This loaf is perfect to make for your friends coming over for chai, or to give to your non-veg neighbor (it contains eggs—although you could definitely substitute flax eggs in their place), or to enjoy around the holidays.

Cardamom Pistachio Loaf

serves 8-10 - 1 hour, 20 minutes

1 cup roasted salted shelled pistachios (in the US, I use these)

1 - 1 1/4 cups sugar

The insides of 1 cardamom pod

1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks

3 eggs

1/4 cup milk (oat milk, whole milk, almond, whatever)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup + 3 tbs maida

1 tablespoon corn flour (cornstarch)

1. Preheat the oven to 165 degrees celsius.

2. Pulse the pistachios, cardamom pod insides, and sugar in your mixee (food processor) until it makes a fine powder (about 2-3 minutes if you’re using large grain sized sugar).

3. Add the butter; puree until incorporated. 

4. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla; pulse again until incorporated (you might need to scrape the sides).

5. Add the baking powder, maida (all purpose flour) , salt, and corn flour (cornstarch), pulse until incorporated. 

6. Transfer to a standard size loaf pan lined with parchment paper (must use parchment paper, otherwise it. will. stick.). Bake for about 1 hour, although sometimes it needs 1 hour and 10 minutes – when a toothpick comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven, let cool for 10 minutes. Remove loaf from the pan and let cool until you can handle it to slice and serve, about 20 more minutes. The loaf will rise but it will be flat on top, looking a lot like a big brick – that’s exactly how it should be)

**Notes: You can use caster sugar or brown sugar in place of regular, large sized sugar. I sometimes use almond flour in place of the 1/2 cup of maida (which makes it super dense and lovely and buttery and so so good), and if you do this, make sure you still include the 3 tbs of maida (all purpose flour).