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Easy and delicious Pistachio Bread is especially sweet. The best part is it’s glazed and involves no yeast!!
Although it’s an uncommon flavor, we love pistachio around here! If you do too, try Pistachio Salad and our layered Pistachio Dessert.
Pistachio Quick Bread
My husband loves Pistachios! His favorite pudding is pistachio. His favorite nuts are pistachios. If it has Pistachios, he LOVES it!!
Today’s bread recipe also includes pistachios—both a sweet pistachio flavor for the base, as well as crushed up pistachios on top.
We really can’t call this a bread since it’s more like a cake (a cake mix is used as a shortcut for this recipe). But for kicks and giggles, let’s call it bread since it’s made in a bread pan. 😉
Because of the green color of the bread, we actually like to serve this for St. Patrick’s Day, but trust me, it’s perfect for any holiday or time of year!
We have a feeling you will love this delicious sweet, quick bread.
how to make Pistachio Bread
MIX. In a large bowl, whisk cake mix, pistachio pudding mix, eggs, oil, water, and sour cream together until well combined. Set aside.
BAKE. Grease 2 regular size loaf pans and sprinkle some cinnamon sugar (I use 2 TB sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon) on the inside. Pour half the batter into each pan. Bake in the oven at 350 for 45 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.
GLAZE. Combine 2 cups powdered sugar, 2 TB melted butter, 1 tsp. almond extract, and 1 tsp. vanilla to make a glaze. Add a few tablespoons of milk, until it’s the consistency that you like.
ENJOY! Drizzle glaze over bread and sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Serve and enjoy!
RECIPE TIPS
Of course we love this bread any day of the year, but it is especially fun to serve for Christmas or St. Patrick’s Day! Here are a few tips to make it extra special:
- Add a few drops of green food coloring to the batter to make the bread even more green. Even the Grinch himself would approve!
- Add some crushed up pistachios to the batter if you’d like for some extra crunch.
- Loaves of this bread would make perfect gifts for friends and neighbors! Simply bake them in disposable foil pans, cover with plastic wrap when cooled and finish off with a festive bow.
- Make mini-loaves of bread make sure to fill your pans no more than ½ way full and check on them every 5 min after 25 min of cooking. Insert a toothpick into the bread and if it comes out clean you are good to go.
FAQ
Can this bread be made ahead of time? Yes. This bread can be made ahead and stored in the freezer for up to 6 months.
How to store? To store, make sure to cool the loaf first, then wrap tightly with plastic wrap and cover with some aluminum foil or pop the wrapped bread into a Ziploc freezer bag.
How to freeze? To freeze, wait to add the glaze to the top of the bread after it has defrosted.
For more Quick bread recipes, check out:
- Snickerdoodle Bread
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- Glazed Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Blueberry Bread
- Banana Bread
- Almond Poppy Seed Bread
Pistachio Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 (15.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
- 2 (3.4-ounce) boxes instant pistachio pudding mix
- 4 eggs
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ⅛ cup water
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 tablspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½-1 cup chopped pistachios
Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, mix the dry cake mix, dry pudding mix, eggs, oil, water, and sour cream until well combined. Set aside.
- In a small bowl mix the sugar and cinnamon. Grease 2 regular-size loaf pans and sprinkle the suagr mixture evenly on the bottom and sides of the pans.
- Pour half the batter into each pan. Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool.
- Combine powdered sugar, melted butter, almond extract, and vanilla. Add milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it's the consistency that you like.
- Drizzle glaze over bread and sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe adapted from HERE.
This recipe is delicious and easy to make. The batter is thick and doesn’t spread easy like other reviews said, but its not an issue. I put Nutella in the middle for an extra treat. So yummy!
Ooh I bet it was tasty with Nutella inside. Thanks for sharing what you did. I’m glad that you loved the bread!
This was amazing!!! Everyone was a bit skeptic, but were amazed on how incredibly delicious this turned out. This will forever be a bread I make year round. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
You’re welcome!! I’m so happy to hear the bread was a hit!
This recipe is just fantastic and so easy to make and the finished product is so pretty to look at as well.
Thank you!! So happy to hear you enjoyed the bread recipe! The color definitely is a fun one.
I made this in a Bundt cake today, with a few of my additions/changes. For my husband’s birthday. He absolutely loved it! Thanks for this base recipe!
I wish there were some way to post a picture of it.
Oh how fun! I’m so glad you could use it. I’d love to see a picture. If you are on FB, you can join the group Lil’ Luna Chicks and post there! We love when people share recipe pics!
Just curious why this is called bread when its made with cake mix and pudding? It looks like cake too except of course that it’s made in loaf pans. I would love it if it tasted more like cake than bread anyway, so was wondering about that. Looks awesome, wish I had seen it for St Patricks Day this year.
It’s because it is baked in loaf pans, but it certainly has a texture of a moist cake. It’s a great recipe!
Has anyone added vanilla extract to the batter? Would that bring out more flavor?
It is extremely thick and when it bakes with a clean toothpick, as it cools it falls down but is gooey. It doesn’t look anything like the recipe and the time and clean up is not worth it.
Jimmie, I threw it out because I thought I did something wrong. The batter was so thick that I had a tough time mixing it. I even used an electric mixer, but it couldn’t mix it. I’m stunned that it has so many great reviews.
Just made this. The batter was super thick so wasn’t sure how it would come out but it is really good! Will make again!
I’m so glad to hear that!! Thanks for giving the recipe a try!
Was wondering if anyone has made cupcakes with this recipe.
Excellent pistachios bread recipe
Thank you!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Has anyone tried using a white cake mix instead of a yellow one? Trying to avoid going back to the store. Making for the family’s St. Patrick’s Day delayed celebration. I’m veganizing this and so excited.
I haven’t tried with a white cake, but I imagine you could swap it out. The flavor may be slightly different, but it should still work!
I think the nutritional value’s are way wrong.
Are those seriously the nutrition facts per serving!! Or is that per loaf? Or entire recipe? I thought I would save the recipe and try it, but not with those calories, fat, etc.
That would be the nutrition facts for the recipe. 🙂