Effortless Pistachio Cake Cheese (Print Version)

# Ingredients:

→ Cake Base

01 - 150g self-raising flour
02 - 100g pistachios, shelled
03 - 4 large eggs
04 - 2 tbsp milk
05 - 200g soft margarine
06 - 200g white sugar
07 - 1 tsp baking powder

→ Frosting

08 - ⅛ tsp pure vanilla essence
09 - 200g rich cream cheese
10 - 130g powdered sugar

→ Topping

11 - 2 tbsp ground pistachios

# Instructions:

01 - Warm the oven to 190°C for a regular heat or use 170°C if you have a fan setting. Grab two sandwich tins (8-inch ones with bottoms that come out), and make sure you line them with parchment. Those loose bottoms make life so much simpler when it’s time to take out the cakes!
02 - Pulse the pistachios in a processor until they’re ground up finely—don’t go too far, just enough so there’s no big chunks and it isn’t a full powder. This step gets that pistachio flavor right in the middle of everything!
03 - Take your sugar and margarine, then beat them together until everything turns extra fluffy and pale. It might feel like ages, but trust me, a little extra time here makes all the difference for a soft cake!
04 - Tip in the ground pistachios along with your flour, baking powder, eggs, and milk. Mix it enough to bring everything together, but stop as soon as it looks like a thick, combined batter. Overdoing it will give you a less fluffy cake!
05 - Scoop the batter into the two tins you prepped earlier, making sure they’re evenly filled. Spread the tops smooth, then pop them into the hot oven. Leave them to bake for roughly 20 minutes—check they’re done by sticking in a skewer; it should come out clean!
06 - Once baked, give the cakes around 10 minutes to cool down while still in the tins. Carefully move them out onto a cooling rack and wait until they’re cooled completely. If they're even just a bit warm, icing is going to turn into a drippy disaster!
07 - When those cakes are fully cool, it’s frosting time. Use a bowl to mix the cream cheese, icing sugar, and vanilla thoroughly. Keep an eye on it—don’t overbeat, or it might lose its thick, spreadable texture!
08 - Flip one cake layer upside down onto a serving plate. Add a big dollop (about half) of your cream cheese frosting and spread it out gently with a spatula or back of a spoon so it’s evenly covered.
09 - Place the second sponge on top, right side facing up. Smooth the leftover frosting across the top only—don’t stress about the sides! This casual, homemade look is part of what makes the cake so inviting.
10 - Blitz the last bit of pistachios until they’re slightly chunky and sprinkle them over your frosted top. It not only adds crunch and a pop of green, but it teases what’s inside when you take a bite!

# Notes:

01 - You can sub butter for margarine if you want a deeper, richer flavor, but margarine makes it airier.
02 - Store this cake in the fridge because of the cream cheese topping. Let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before diving in!
03 - Refrigerated, this cake stays good for about 72 hours if you keep it sealed up.
04 - For an extra kick of nuttiness, mix 1/4 tsp almond extract into the cake batter along with the wet ingredients!

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