Toasted Pistachio Cinnamon Swirl Cake.

I hate to admit it, but I bake much more often than I blog.  It was quite an effort to even get myself to bring the camera out for these photos on a rainy Sunday morning, but I'm glad I did!

Instead of the common walnut or pecan, I substituted beautifully green pistachios in this cake, which means a lovely hit of color when you cut into it.  Toasting them intensifies their unique flavor and kept them from becoming too soft as pistachios have a tendency to do in baked goods. 

I miss last week's heat wave already - I can't wait for "real" summer to happen!  This cold rainy stuff can take a hike as far as I'm concerned, but this cake put a smile on my face as soon as I tasted the comforting tender crumb combined with the brown sugar-cinnamon and toasted nuts.  Enjoy! :)

Toasted Pistachio Cinnamon Swirl Cake
Adapted from Cooking Light
1/3 cup toasted pistachios, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and spray a 10-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine the nuts, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a large bowl mix the sugar and oil, then add the eggs one at a time.  Stir in the vanilla extract, then add in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until a smooth batter forms.  Pour 1/3 of the batter into the bottom of the greased Bundt pan, then half of the nut mixture.  Pour another 1/3 of the batter, then the last half of the nut mixture and the last amount of batter on top.  The batter will be fairly liquidy so don't worry about spreading it to the edges of the pan or anything like that, it will spread and rise as it bakes.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 35-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.  Let it cool on a rack for 10 minutes before inverting the cake and cooling completely.  It will keep for up to 4 days stored in a cake keeper or airtight container.