Watergate Cake is inspired by the vintage salad and has been on just about every Southern potluck table since the 1970s. That same flavor turns into a soft, three-layer cake with a light green crumb and luscious cream cheese frosting that feels straight out of a vintage recipe box.
What Makes This Old-School Dessert Worth Revisiting
This cake uses the same pistachio pudding that gave the original Watergate Salad its color and flavor, it keeps the layers soft and lightly green without being overly sweet.
My husbands a big fan of pistachios, so I’m always looking for desserts to showcase them like buttery cranberry shortbread cookies. He’s not a fan of Watergate salad, but in cake form it hit all of the boxes for him, pistachio flavor, moist soft cake and creamy frosting that’s not too sweet.
The pudding mix helps the cake stay moist for a couple of days, making it reliable for gatherings or make-ahead baking.
A splash of lemon-lime soda keeps the crumb light, just like in a 7 Up cake, and the coconut blends in quietly to add a bit of sweetness. Both elements fit right into the cake without drawing attention, giving it an easy, familiar feel that lines up with the vintage recipe that inspired it, without any marshmallows.
The frosting is a pistachio twist on a classic cream cheese frosting, turning out smooth, balanced, and a brighter shade of green than the cake itself. It spreads easily and adds a deeper pistachio flavor that ties everything together.
A Look at What Builds the Pistachio Flavor
This pistachio cake gets its color and tender texture from a handful of familiar baking staples. You can find the full recipe card with all the details just below.
- Pistachio pudding mix: This can be found on the baking aisle in most grocery stores. Sometimes it’s hard to find but you can find it on Amazon. You’ll need 2 boxes.
- Pistachios: Salted pistachios are the perfect complement to the sweet cake. These are sprinkled on top.
Bringing the Layers to Life
Step One: Mix the Dry Ingredients
Step Two: Cream the Butter and Sugar
Step Three: Pour Into Pans
Tip: Use my favorite kitchen scale to make sure your layers turn out even.
Step Four: Bake and Cool
Bake until the tops spring back softly when pressed and a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in their pans briefly, then turn them out onto racks. Cool completely before frosting.
Step Five: Make the Frosting
Tip: If the frosting feels too thick, you can add a little milk to it.
Step Six: Assemble the Cake
This turn table makes frosting much easier.
Watergate Cake may sound like a throwback, but it earns its spot in the modern dessert lineup. The pistachio pudding keeps the layers tender, the lemon-lime soda brings a little lift, and the cream cheese frosting gives the whole thing a cool, pistachio-rich finish.
It’s the kind of cake you can make ahead, carry to any gathering, and count on disappearing slice by slice. If you’re craving something nostalgic but still genuinely delicious, this one delivers every time.
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 ¼ cup cake flour
- 1 3 oz pkg pistachio pudding mix
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cup butter softened
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 4 eggs room temp
- 2 egg whites room temp
- 3 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 ½ cup Sprite
- ¾ cup coconut
Frosting:
- ½ cup butter softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 3 oz pkg pistachio pudding mix
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup salted pistachios chopped
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350º. Line three 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper cut to the size of the bottom of the cake pans. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of the pans.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, pudding mix, baking powder, soda, and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until creamy and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the oil and beat an additional minute. Add eggs one at a time, ending with the egg whites, beating after each addition until incorporated. Add vanilla and coconut and beat until well combined.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture with the Sprite in three additions, beating on low just until incorporated, don’t over mix. Pour the batter evenly into the three cake pans.
- Bake for 24-26 minutes until the tops spring back when touched and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run an offset spatula or knife around the edges and invert onto a wire rack. Let cool completely before frosting.
Frosting:
- Use an electric mixer to cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the pistachio pudding mix and beat until combined. Add the vanilla and salt and mix to combine. Slowly add the powdered sugar with the mixer on low. Once incorporated, beat on medium high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Assemble the cake layers spreading frosting between each. Frost the sides and then the top. Sprinkle with chopped pistachios.
Notes
- Freezing the layers make it easier to frost.
The recipe calls for 3/4 cup coconut. Do you put the coconut in the cake batter? The picture of the finished cake doesn’t look like the coconut was sprinkled on top.
Yes it oges in the batter.
What is amount of pow sugar for frosting? it’s not on ingredient list.
You’ll need 4 cups.