Pistachio Pudding Cake (Watergate Cake)
Sweet pistachio pudding cake is a vintage recipe also known as Watergate cake that is sweet, nutty with a beautiful green color! Make this delicious cake for Christmas, St. Patrick's Day, or your next potluck.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 15.25 ounces yellow cake mix 1 box
- 5.1 ounces instant pistachio pudding can use a pack and a half of the smaller packs
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup club soda can also use a lemon-lime soda
- 1 cup butter melted,salted
- 1 cup pistachios shelled and chopped, plus extra for garnish on frosting below
For The Frosting
- 5.1 ounces instant pistachio pudding
- 1 ¼ cup milk
- 8 ounces whipped topping like Cool Whip
- Pistachios chopped, optional garnish
- Maraschino cherries optional garnish
Instructions
Making The Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a square 9 x 13 glass pan with parchment paper or grease well with cooking oil or a baking nonstick spray. Place the butter in a small bowl. Melt the butter in the microwave, about 1 minute.
- In a second large bowl add the yellow cake mix, the first box of instant pistachio pudding mix, eggs, club soda and melted butter. Stir until fully mixed with a spatula or an electric mixer.
- Chop the pistachios coarsely. Fold in the pistachios into the batter.
- Pour batter for the cake into the prepared pan. Bake in the oven for 35- 40 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Let the cake cool in the pan completely, at least 45 minutes. As a general rule, the cake should be cool to the touch.
Making The Frosting
- In a second large bowl add the second instant pudding mix and the milk. With a metal whisk, blend together the pudding mix and the milk.
- Add the whipped topping into the pudding mix. Fold the whipped topping into the mixture with a silicone spatula.
- Frost the cooled cake. Add chopped pistachios and optional maraschino cherries to the top of the cake, then slice and serve.
Notes
Please note you will need boxed pudding mixes for both the cake and the frosting.
Taste the frosting before frosting the cake. If you prefer a little more pistachio flavor in the frosting, try blending in 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract. Almond extract in particular brings out the pistachio flavor, and the combination is extra delicious.
You can also add a little more green color to the frosting with a few drops of green food coloring.
Nutrition
Calories: 328kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 518mg | Potassium: 136mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 426IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 1mg