If you’ve ever wanted to recreate the intriguing color, texture, and flavor of pistachio muffins that you see at the bakery, this recipe is for you. These pistachio muffins are soft, crunchy, and chewy, all in the same bite.
They are lightly spiced, perfectly sweetened, and delightfully green. Crystallized ginger and roasted pistachios give these muffins their flavor, while puréed spinach adds a punch of color. While they are a fancy treat, they are simple to make on the weekend and will last into the week for a quick breakfast on your morning commute.
Pistachio muffins are the kind of muffin you can’t just eat one of. The pistachio and ginger add an earthy heat that is not overwhelming. Have this alongside a ginger tea or cardamom latte. If you really want to lean into the green and earthy flavors, make a matcha tea to go with your muffins.
When you mix together the wet and dry ingredients, be careful not to overmix the batter. You want the green of the wet ingredients to be distributed fully, but if you mix too much, the result will be less muffin-like and more bread-like.
When you add in the chopped crystallized ginger and pistachios, be careful again to gently fold the add-ins until they are just distributed throughout the batter.
What You Need to Make Pistachio Muffins
Pistachio muffins require large eggs, salt, granulated sugar, fresh spinach, baking powder, baking soda, all-purpose flour, milk, Greek yogurt, roasted and shelled pistachios, vegetable oil, crystallized ginger, and ground ginger. You will not taste the spinach (trust me!).
However, if you omit the fresh spinach, add an extra tablespoon of oil to the batter (your muffins also will not be green). You can use 1%, 2%, or whole milk and 1%, 2%, or full-fat Greek yogurt. The higher the fat content, the richer the final bake will be.
Ingredients:
- Large eggs
- Table salt
- Granulated sugar
- Fresh spinach
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- All-purpose flour
- Milk
- Greek yogurt
- Roasted and shelled pistachios
- Vegetable oil
- Crystallized ginger
- Ground ginger
Tools:
Pistachio muffins require a food processor or blender, one mixing bowl, a sharp knife, and a cutting board. I also recommend using an ice cream scoop to fill your muffin tins to help give your muffins a dome on top.
How To Make Pistachio Muffins
Make the wet ingredients: Place shelled pistachios, vegetable oil, Greek yogurt, milk, and fresh spinach in a food processor and process until smooth. Add in the eggs and pulse 3-4 times. Sprinkle the baking soda and baking powder on top.
Make the batter: Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and ground ginger. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Chop up crystallized ginger into bite-sized pieces and coarsely chop the remaining pistachios. Fold in the crystallized ginger and pistachios, reserving 2-3 tablespoons of each.
Make the muffins: Pour the batter into lined and greased muffin tins. Press in reserved crystallized ginger and pistachios.
Sprinkle the tops with granulated sugar and bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool before enjoying them.
Recipe FAQs
Can I use frozen spinach?
I have never used frozen spinach in this recipe. If I were to try, I would only add ¼-½ of a cup. Frozen spinach is packed tightly and tends to have higher water content, so I would only use a little bit if I were experimenting.
You can also add 2-3 drops of green food coloring if you still want the green color but don’t have spinach to use. If you omit the spinach, add an extra tablespoon of oil.
How long do pistachio muffins last?
Your pistachio muffins will last 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container.
What kind of pistachios should I use?
I like to use shelled, roasted, and lightly salted pistachios. The roasting adds a nice flavor to the muffins that I like. If you use unsalted nuts, add an extra ½ teaspoon of salt to the recipe.
Pistachio Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup shelled pistachios
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 cup fresh spinach
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2/3 cup crystallized ginger
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF
- Place ½ cup of shelled pistachios, ¼ cup of vegetable oil, ¾ cup of Greek yogurt, ¼ cup of milk, and 1 cup of fresh spinach in a food processor and process until smooth. Add in eggs and pulse 3-4 times.
- Sprinkle the baking soda and baking powder on top.
- In a bowl, whisk together 1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour, ½ cup of granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon of table salt, and ½ teaspoon of ground ginger.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.
- Chop up ⅔ cup of crystallized ginger and ½ cup of shelled pistachios coarsely.
- Fold in crystallized ginger and pistachios, reserving 2-3 tablespoons of each.
- Pour batter into prepared muffin tins.
- Press reserved crystallized ginger and pistachios into the tops of the muffins and sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup of granulated sugar.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow the muffins to cool before enjoying them.
Notes
Nutrition
Here are a few other recipes you might enjoy!
- Croissant Muffins (Cruffins)
- Butter Rum Muffins
- Gingerbread Christmas Muffins
- Eggnog Muffins
- Cranberry Lemon Muffins
- Cranberry Lemon Bars
- Blueberry Cinnamon Rolls
Arielle is a food and drink photographer based in Washington, D.C. She was previously a social science researcher before she fell in love with photography.