Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.

Step 2

Place 1/4 cup shelled pistachios in a food processor and grind until small and almost powdery. Watch carefully to prevent them from getting too sticky.

Step 3

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, ground pistachios, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, and salt.

Step 4

Add buttermilk, rosewater, butter, egg, and vanilla extract and stir gently with a wooden spoon or rubber scraper until completely incorporated. The batter may still be a little lumpy, but you don’t want big dry lumps and you don’t want to overmix the batter.

Step 5

Divide the batter evenly amongst the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle the tops with dried rose petals, chopped pistachios, or any other topping you might want.

Step 6

Bake 18-22 minutes or until the tops are firm and lightly browned, and a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean. Allow to cool 10 minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.