Bakery Style Pistachio Muffins

We can’t resist those beautiful green pistachio muffins when we pass by them at the bakery. These home-baked pistachio muffins are just as good and full of that nutty, slightly sweet pistachio flavor we all love. Pistachio pudding mix adds amazing taste, but it also keeps the muffins perfectly moist.

We’re all about muffins around here. Learn how to make any flavor with our master muffin recipe.

I absolutely love pistachio flavored anything, and Winco has the most delicious pistachio muffins in their bakery. You know those muffins. They are the kind that are thick and dense and more like a cake. Winco is just too far of a drive from my house, so I had to come up with a copycat recipe to make at home. After a number of delicious rounds of testing, this is the recipe that fit the bill. Turns out, it was the easiest and cheapest option that won out in the end!

Ingredient Notes

• Salted Butter: If using unsalted butter, add an extra pinch of salt to the batter.
• Pistachio Instant Pudding Mix: The key ingredient for flavor and moisture. Be sure to use instant pudding mix, not the cook-and-serve kind.
• Baking Powder: Make sure yours is fresh (not expired) because this is what makes the muffins rise.
• Milk: Whole, 2%, and 1% are our preferences for the fat content, but technically skim milk and plant-based milk will also work.
• All-Purpose Flour: Be sure to use all-purpose or bread flour here. They both work.
• Extra Sugar for Topping: Creates a lightly crunchy, bakery-style top. You can also swap this for coarse sugar if you want a nice crunch.

Pistachio Pudding Mix

When developing this recipe, we tested so many different ways to get that perfect pistachio flavor—including pistachio extract and even pistachio paste. But no matter how much we used, the flavor just wasn’t strong enough, and pistachio extract really is just too hard to find.

Using a pudding mix is the perfect solution. It has that strong pistachio flavor you are looking for with the bonus of adding a little bit of moisture that makes these muffins extra soft.

You can still add chopped pistachios to the batter for some extra crunch, but the pudding mix is what makes these muffins truly shine.

The Secret to the Perfect Dome

The secret to that perfectly domed muffin top is to blast the muffin batter with super high heat when you first place it into the oven, and then let it finish baking at a slightly lower temperature. The high heat causes the steam in the muffins to release quickly, making the muffins puff up and create that perfect dome on top. 

We start our muffins at 425 degrees F. After about 7 minutes, reduce the heat in the oven to 350 degrees F. Watch your muffins closely as they finish baking.  Ovens vary slightly so your cooking time may vary as some ovens will brown the muffins more than others. Pull your muffins out of the oven as soon as they are golden brown on top.

Thick Batter Ahead

If you’re used to thinner muffin batters, you might be surprised by how thick this one is—but don’t worry, that’s exactly how it should be! It’s a dense batter that bakes up into soft, moist muffins with a perfect crumb.

Because the batter is thick, resist the urge to overmix. Stir just until everything is combined—overmixing can make the muffins dense instead of light and fluffy. When scooping the batter into the muffin tin, a cookie scoop or two spoons will help divide it evenly.