Bakery-style muffins flavored with pistachio pudding mix and topped with the most delicious almond extract glaze!
It started as a fun and festive St Patrick's Day breakfast (they are green!), and soon morphed into everyone's favorite muffin. We are eating them year-round!
These pistachio muffins have it all: a bakery muffin feel with their enormous domes, delicious nutty flavor, a crisp exterior with a soft interior, and they're topped off with an almond glaze so good it may or may not lead to people eating the muffin tops and leaving the rest.
Pistachio Pudding
What makes these muffins pistachio muffins is just a regular box of instant pistachio pudding mix (you do have to use instant!).
I love using pudding mix in baked goods not only for the added flavor, but also because it helps keep baked goods soft for longer (like these chocolate chip cookies).
And here, the muffins get their signature green color from the pudding mix. I will warn you if you've never used it that it's like a Wicked Witch of the West green - don't worry! It's supposed to be that color.
This recipe calls for dry pudding mix - no need to prepare it, just pour the mix in with the dry ingredients. So easy!
One thing I've noticed using different brands of pistachio pudding mix is that they all have different amounts of chopped nuts in them. Per my research, Jell-o has the most and store brands have less in varying degrees. So if you make these and want more or less nuts in them, you may want to try a different pudding brand.
What does pistachio pudding taste like?
I love pistachios, but pistachio pudding doesn't really taste like pistachio. It has more of a general nutty flavor with some faint almond notes in the background. It is delicious(!), but if you go into it expecting it to taste like pistachio, you might be surprised!
Pistachio pudding mix actually has almond flavoring in it, but I don't find it to be enough, so I like to give it a little boost by adding almond extract to the mix, too!
Which makes for a muffin that's nutty, with lots of almond flavoring, and isn't overly sweet. SO delicious!
An easy muffin glaze!
Maybe my favorite part of these muffins (which is really saying something) is this easy almond glaze!
It's a thick glaze that runs down the sides of the muffins while they're still warm and hardens as it sets. It's such a flavor booster, and makes these feel so celebratory, but I love that each muffin has just the right amount, and since it hardens, little fingers don't get overly sticky when eating!
I mix this glaze up right when the muffins come out of the oven. It's just powdered sugar, milk, and almond extract. It will be THICK, but should still be easy to mix together. If it's overly stiff, add an extra splash of milk.
Once the muffins are ready to come out of the pan (about 5 minutes after they come out of the oven), set them on a wire rack and spoon a dollop of glaze on top of each one. The heat from the muffins will cause the glaze to run down the sides and it will harden as it cools. So good!
If you wanted to get extra festive, you could add sprinkles on top or do a fun food coloring OR both!
Pistachio Muffins with an Easy Almond Glaze
Ingredients
Pistachio Muffins
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups flour
- 1 (3.4 ounce) box instant pistachio pudding mix
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Almond Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 4 teaspoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease a standard-size muffin tin with non-stick spray.In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs, almond extract, and milk until well combined.In a medium bowl, combine the flour, pudding mix, baking powder, and salt.Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Be careful not to overmix! Some lumps are okay. Divide the muffin batter between the prepared muffin tins. Bake on the middle rack at 425 for 7 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 12-14 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in pan. Meanwhile, whisk together all glaze ingredients. The glaze should be thick, but if it's too stiff to stir, add an extra splash of milk. Remove muffins from tin and place on a wire rack. Set the rack on top of a baking sheet or parchment paper to catch any glaze that drips. Spoon a dollop of glaze on top of each - the heat from the muffins will cause it to run slowly down the sides, and it will harden as it sets.Sample one warm if you must (who could resist??), then allow to cool completely and store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
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