Pistachio Muffins, plus Chocolate Chips

These homemade Pistachio Muffins, plus Chocolate Chips are made with double the dose of REAL pistachios, for an authentic nutty, pistachio flavor. When paired with chocolate chips, these muffins are sweet, satisfying, and good. Suited to breakfast, or as an anytime treat.

It's not easy being green! But we're here to tell you that it is. And you don't have to use the fake stuff (no pistachio pudding or food coloring here)-only real pistachios- because that's how pistachio muffins should be.

We sought to make an authentic, pistachio nut muffin from scratch. These pistachio muffins contain real pistachios and pistachio cream (more about that in a bit). That's double the nutty pleasure!

But even with all that pistachio flavor they needed something extra. Enter chocolate chips! Chocolate chips make them a little fancy, a little more decadent, but life is too serious, and muffins shouldn't be.

What is pistachio cream?

Before we talk about the creamy stuff, there are 3 different pistachio spreads you will come across- pistachio paste, pistachio butter, and pistachio cream.

Pistachio paste is a thick, smooth paste made from ground pistachios. It does not contain any other ingredients, like sugar, oil, or milk often found in other ground pistachio products such as pistachio cream.

Pistachio butter is also made from ground pistachios similar to peanut or almond butter. It's more coarse than pistachio paste.

Pistachio cream (pistachio crema) on the other hand, is a sweetened, flavored version of pistachio paste. Some are decadent, incorporating sugar, milk, butter, and white chocolate. Others are more flavored with only sugar and/or honey. The consistency is usually smooth, and creamy, and the color ranges from bright green to less intense greens.

Ingredient notes

Once you hunt down pistachio cream, the rest is smooth sailing. And don't worry, pistachio cream is becoming more and more popular, and is readily available either in-store or online.

• Flour
• Baking soda
• Salt
• Sugar These muffins use a mix of white and dark brown sugar.
• Eggs
• Butter Unsalted and melted.
• Buttermilk we almost always use buttermilk for our muffins. It keeps them extra moist.
• Vanilla and almond extract Not heavy on the almond, these are pistachio muffins after all. But enough to bring out the nuttiness of the pistachio. If you have or want to use pistachio extract, even better (it's not a common ingredient), so we use almond, which we always have on hand.
• Pistachio cream (pistachio cremacrema di pistacchio) - Look for Italian or Mediterranean brands for the best quality. We buy ours online but larger retailers like Costco have been carrying it as well as smaller grocery stores. Our neighborhood grocery store started selling pistachio cream, although it was located in the cheese section (as a charcuterie option). It will most likely be found near the peanut butter.
• Hot water Used to thin the pistachio cream and keep the muffins nice and moist.
• Pistachios Raw, shelled, and unsalted.
• Chocolate chips we use bittersweet, but you can also use semisweet or milk chocolate chips.

Step-by-step instructions

Pistachio Muffins, plus Chocolate Chips are easy to make. Measure out your ingredients first for the best success. Full instructions are located in the recipe card.

Step 1. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. Step 2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar. Step 3. Add the buttermilk, butter, and extracts to the bowl with the eggs. Step 4. Whisk until combined.

Step 5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir. Stir in the pistachio cream and water. Step 6. Add the pistachios and chocolate chips. Step 7. Mix until incorporated. Step 8. Scoop batter into muffin tin, and top with crushed pistachios and coarse sugar.

Expert tip

Adding hot water to the pistachio cream helps to thin it out and adds moisture to the muffins. For the best results, mix the pistachio cream and hot water first, then add it to the batter.

Substitutions and variations

Here are a few easy swaps you can make if you find yourself missing an ingredient.

1. Pistachio Turn these into peanut butter chocolate chip muffins by replacing the pistachio cream with peanut butter and the pistachios with chopped peanuts.
2. Chocolate chips The recipe calls for bittersweet chips, mainly because the muffins are plenty sweet already. But you can use semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips.
3. Buttermilk In place of the buttermilk you can use sour cream or Greek yogurt.
4. Sugars You can use all white sugar, or substitute light brown sugar for the dark brown sugar.

The best way to eat pistachio muffins

We might be biased but we love to eat these muffins PLAIN and WARM right out of the oven! When serving them warm (not piping hot), the chocolate is still melty and gooey- and it doesn't get any better than that.

We also love to spread a dollop of pistachio cream right on the muffin. Because- more pistachio!

And speaking of spreading things on muffins- try our chocolate tahini spread. It's creamy, nutty, and chocolatey and will take these muffins over the top.

Keeping leftovers

Store the cooled pistachio muffins in an air-tight container lined with a paper towel. Place an additional paper towel over the top of the muffins to absorb any moisture. Leave at room temperature for up to 4 days.

To freeze, wrap the cooled muffins in plastic wrap, then store them in a freezer-safe plastic bag for up to 3 months.

Kitchen questions

Can we use pistachio paste or pistachio butter?

Yes, you certainly can. The textures will vary depending on which you choose, but the pistachio flavor will still shine. Pistachio cream has sugar already in it, so using either pistachio butter or paste will change the flavors slightly.

Why aren't our pistachio muffins green?

That's because these muffins don't use any of the fake stuff. Many pistachio muffins call for instant pistachio pudding which contains food coloring. The color of your muffins will also differ depending on the color of your pistachios. Pistachios range in color from bright green to brown.

Want more muffin recipes? Here you go!

Ingredients

Makes 12 muffins

• 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp Kosher or fine sea salt
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• ½ cup (4 ounces) dark brown sugar
• ½ cup (4 ounces) white granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp almond extract
• ⅔ cup buttermilk, room temperature
• ½ cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 6 tbsp pistachio cream (see note)
• 6 tbsp hot water
• ½ cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• ⅓ cup chopped, raw, shelled pistachios (unsalted) (plus more for garnishing (about another 2 tablespoons))
• 1-2 tbsp coarse or turbinado sugar

Equipment

• 12 cup standard muffin tin
• muffin liners or non-stick baking spray
• mixing bowls, whisk, spatula, measuring cups

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with muffin liners or spray each well with baking spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

3. In another bowl, combine the eggs, and both the sugars. Whisk until combined. Add the extracts, buttermilk, and butter, and mix well.

4. In a small bowl, thin the pistachio cream with the hot water by whisking it well until smooth.

5. Add the egg mixture and the pistachio mixture to the bowl with the flour. Using a spatula, stir until combined, and no flour streaks remain. Fold in the pistachios and the chocolate chips.

6. Divide the muffin batter evenly between the wells. Top with chopped pistachios and turbinado sugar.

7. Bake at 425℉ for 6 minutes. After 6 minutes, reduce the heat to 350℉ and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until golden brown, and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to rest for 15 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to finish cooling, or serve right away!

Kitchen notes

Pistachio cream: Pistachio cream (pistachio crema) is a sweetened, flavored version of pistachio paste (ground pistachios). It contains sugar, and sometimes other ingredients. It can be found in-store or online. See the blog post for more details and recommendations.

Storage: Store the cooled muffins in an air-tight container lined with a paper towel. Place an additional paper towel over the muffins to absorb any moisture. Leave at room temperature for up to 4 days.