Instant Pot Greek Honey Lemon Cake with Pistachios
Bring the bright flavors of the Mediterranean home with this Instant Pot Greek Honey Lemon Cake with Pistachios. Made with fresh lemon zest, honey, and a soft, buttery crumb, this easy pressure cooker cake is finished with chopped pistachios for the perfect balance of citrus and crunch. Unlike traditional baked cakes, the Instant Pot creates a wonderfully moist texture with very little effort, making it a great choice for beginner bakers and busy families alike. Serve it with whipped cream, Greek yogurt, or fresh berries for an elegant restaurant-style dessert that’s surprisingly easy to make.
This cake is part of our “I don’t bake cakes – restaurant-style cake series”.
Our favorite desserts are easy to prepare, like ice cream cakes that take five minutes to assemble, and simple parfaits and sundaes, with the addition of quick breads.
All of which are full of flavour but skip the traditional cake-baking stress.
If you’re looking for tasty restaurant-style desserts that are practical, then you’ll find them here. Check out our simple desserts.
They’re all impressive, yet easy enough that you can focus on preparing your dinner menu instead of fretting over dessert.
We especially love this honey lemon cake because it goes so well with a Mediterranean-inspired menu. It’s the perfect sweet finish to a Greek night at home or Doner shop-inspired menu at home.
We love to add slices of this cake to our hot honey appetizer board. This is our go-to sharing board for easy entertaining during the holidays. Simply whip up a batch of easy hot honey and check out these ideas for what to do with hot honey.
Love incredibly simple yet delicious desserts?
Try our slow cooker chocolate fondue and fruit and yogurt parfait next!
Content in this Post
- Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ingredients in Greek Honey Lemon Cake
- Ingredients
- Optional Flavor Variations
- Recommended Equipment
- How to Make Greek Honey Lemon Cake in Instant Pot
- STEP 1 — Mix Dry Ingredients
- STEP 2 — Mix Wet Ingredients
- STEP 3 — Combine Dry and Wet Ingredients
- STEP 4 — Pour Batter into Pan
- STEP 5 — Prepare Instant Pot and Cook
- STEP 6 — Allow To Cool and Garnish
- Instructions
- Optional Finish
- What to Serve With Greek Honey Lemon Cake
- Serving Suggestions
- Best Uses for Leftover Greek Honey Lemon Cake
- Storage Tips
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- You'll Also Love
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
🍋 Bright Lemon Flavor
Fresh lemon zest give this cake a light, refreshing citrus flavor.
🍯 Naturally Sweetened with Honey
Honey adds warmth and depth that pairs beautifully with the lemon.
💚 Crunchy Pistachios
Pistachios add texture, color, and a classic Mediterranean flavor.
⚡ Easy Instant Pot Method
No need to worry about oven temperatures or overbaking. The Instant Pot does the hard work.
🍰 Restaurant-Style Dessert
Serve it with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or Greek yogurt for an elegant finish.
🌿 Perfect for Every Occasion
Great for Easter, Mother’s Day, brunch, afternoon tea, birthdays, or a Mediterranean dinner night.
Ingredients in Greek Honey Lemon Cake
- Flour – all purpose flour
- Almond Flour – finely ground almond flour
- Eggs – four large eggs
- Honey – 100% pure honey
- Butter – salted or unsalted, we prefer to use salted butter
- Milk – whole milk, slightly warmed or room temperature
- Lemon Zest – from a fresh medium-sized lemon
- Baking Powder
- Vanilla – pure vanilla extract
- Salt
- Pistachios – put on half the amount of chopped pistachios on before cooking, and the remaining half are sprinkled on top of the honey lemon cake after cooking.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- ¾ cup (95 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (25 g) almond flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter, softened
- ⅔ cup honey
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons whole milk, slightly warmed
- Zest of 1 medium lemon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional but recommended)
Topping
- ⅓ cup chopped pistachios
Optional Flavor Variations
Orange Honey Cake
Replace the lemon with fresh orange zest and juice.
Lemon Almond Cake
Increase the almond flour slightly and top with toasted sliced almonds.
Honey Lavender Cake
Add a small amount of culinary lavender.
Honey Cardamom Cake
A warm Middle Eastern-inspired variation.
Honey Pistachio Rose Cake
Add a tiny splash of rose water and garnish with pistachios.
Recommended Equipment
An Instant Pot with cake pan and trivet is needed for this recipe. We use the cake pan and trivet from the official Instant Pot Silicone Steamer Set.
We love our citrus zester to make the process easier. You could also use the fine grater on this cheese grater.
How to Make Greek Honey Lemon Cake in Instant Pot
If you’re put off by baking traditional cakes, this Instant Pot method is for you. It’s a an easy mix, set and forget it.
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STEP 1 — Mix Dry Ingredients
Grease a 7-inch round and 2-inch deep Instant Pot-safe silicone cake pan. We use the cake pan and trivet from the official Instant Pot Silicone Steamer Set.
In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, and salt.
STEP 2 — Mix Wet Ingredients
In a large bowl, beat the softened butter until light and creamy.
Add the honey and continue beating until well combined. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in warm milk, lemon zest, and vanilla (if using).
STEP 3 — Combine Dry and Wet Ingredients
Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined. Don’t overmix.
STEP 4 — Pour Batter into Pan
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Sprinkle half of the chopped pistachios evenly over the top.
Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil.
STEP 5 — Prepare Instant Pot and Cook
Pour 1 cup of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet inside.
Lower the cake pan onto the trivet. Secure the Instant Pot lid and set the valve to Sealing.
Pressure cook on High for 40 minutes. Allow a 10–15 minute natural release, then carefully release any remaining pressure by setting the valve to venting.
STEP 6 — Allow To Cool and Garnish
Check the center with a toothpick. If it isn’t done, cook for another 3–5 minutes under pressure.
Cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes before removing. Add the remaining half of chopped pistachios to the top of the cake. Drizzle with additional honey or hot honey, if desired. Let cool completely before slicing.
Instructions
- Grease a 7-inch round cake pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together:
- all-purpose flour
- almond flour
- baking powder
- salt
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter until light and creamy.
- Add the honey and continue beating until well combined.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Stir in:
- warm milk
- lemon zest
- vanilla (if using)
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined. Don’t overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Sprinkle the chopped pistachios evenly over the top.
- Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil.
- Pour 1 cup of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet inside.
- Lower the cake pan onto the trivet.
- Pressure cook on High for 40 minutes.
- Allow a 10–15 minute natural release, then carefully release any remaining pressure.
- Check the center with a toothpick. If it isn’t done, cook for another 3–5 minutes under pressure.
- Cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes before removing. Let cool completely before slicing.
Optional Finish
Just before serving, you can add:
- 🍯 Warm honey or hot honey
- 💚 More chopped pistachios
- 🍋 A little extra fresh lemon zest
That gives it a bakery-style finish without much extra work.
What to Serve With Greek Honey Lemon Cake
Serving Suggestions
Serve with:
- Fresh whipped cream
- Vanilla ice cream
- Greek yogurt
- Honey drizzle
- Fresh berries
- Extra chopped pistachios
- Thin lemon slices
- Mint leaves
- Whipped hot honey butter
Best Uses for Leftover Greek Honey Lemon Cake
If you happen to have leftovers from this cake, you can turn it into two more desserts, serve with coffee and tea, and add some slices to an appetizer board.
Turn This Cake Into Two More Desserts
- 🍨 Greek Honey Lemon Cake Sundae chop honey lemon cake into cubes and layer in a sundae glass with vanilla ice cream and honey or hot honey if you like spice. Top with whipped cream and a cherry!
- 🥣 Greek Honey Lemon Cake Parfait chop cake slices into cubes and layer in a parfait glass with vanilla yogurt, granola and honey (or hot honey). Garnish with whipped cream and a cherry on top!
- Enjoy some slices of honey lemon cake with coffee and tea
- Add slices to an Appetizer or Charcuterie board like our Hot Honey Sharing Board
Storage Tips
- Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Bring to room temperature before serving for the best texture.
More Greek Recipes
- Greek Seasoning Blend
- Greek Lemon Rice
- Horiatiki Salad
- Chicken Souvlaki Pita Wrap
- Greek Dressing
- Greek Orzo Salad
- Tzatziki Sauce
- Whipped Feta with Hot Honey
- Greek Lemonade
More Easy Desserts
- Neapolitan Ice Cream Cake
- Thanksgiving Ice Cream Cake
- Brownie Ice Cream Cake
- Easy Slow Cooker Chocolate Fondue and what to dip in chocolate fondue
- Honey Cake Parfait
- Honey Cake Sundae
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I substitute almond flour?
Can I make this cake ahead of time?
Why is my Instant Pot cake so moist?
Can I freeze this cake?
You’ll Also Love
Here’s an easy and satisfying restaurant-style fruit and yogurt parfait with vanilla yogurt, blueberries, banana and granola. For a Mediterranean version, you can make a similar parfait with vanilla yogurt, fruit, granola, honey, pistachios and dates.
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Instant Pot Greek Honey Lemon Cake with Pistachios
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1 Cup Butter, we use salted butter, unsalted is fine too
- ⅔ Cup Honey
- 4 Eggs
- 3 tablespoons Milk, whole milk or regular milk
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Zest, zest from one medium lemon
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract, optional
Topping
- ⅓ Cup Pistachios, divided, half goes on top of cake batter before cooking, remaining half goes on top of cake after baking.
Instructions
- Grease a 7-inch round, 2-inch deep Instant Pot safe silicone cake pan. We use the cake pan and trivet from the Instant Pot Silicone Steamer Set. In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter until light and creamy.Add the honey and continue beating until well combined. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in warm milk, lemon zest, and vanilla (if using).
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined. Don't overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Sprinkle half of the chopped pistachios evenly over the top.
- Pour 1 cup of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet inside.
- Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil. Lower the cake pan onto the trivet. Fasten the Instant Pot lid and set the valve to Sealing. Pressure cook on High for 40 minutes. Allow a 10–15 minute natural release, then carefully release any remaining pressure by setting the valve to venting.
- Check the center with a toothpick. If it isn't done, cook for another 3–5 minutes under pressure.Cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes before removing. Add the remaining half of chopped pistachios to the top of the cake. Drizzle with additional honey or hot honey, if desired. Let cool completely before slicing.
Video
Nutrition
Note
This recipe is provided for informational purposes only. The above nutritional values are estimates and should only be used as a guide. Please use proper food safety practices, always use a food thermometer to ensure safe cooking temperature, and consult a professional if you have dietary restrictions or allergies.
