Mama's Southern Coconut Cake!

  

Coconut cake is just sort of a tradition in the south at holiday dinners and special occasions.  My mother makes one of the best coconut cakes you will ever taste.   She has been making this cake for years.  I am not sure how many years, but for a long time.  She used to make these and sell them during the holiday season.  I can remember our dining room table being just full of finished coconut cakes waiting in their boxes to be picked up.   

She still makes one for special friends now and then, but she is basically out of the baking and catering business and she says she wants to keep it that way...lol.  I don't blame her one bit, she has worked hard all of her life.

Coconut cake is a big favorite in my husband's family.  I joke that my husband is the connoisseur of coconut cakes.  You could line up 10 coconut cakes and blindfold him and give him a taste test and he could tell you which cake was made by my mother and what was not quite as good about all of the others. 

 Not too long ago, I went to a dinner that he didn't attend and I brought him a big piece of coconut cake home from it.  As soon as he took a bite  he said, "Your mother didn't make this, did she?"   Actually, it looked pretty much like her coconut cake so I was surprised.  I asked how he knew.  He said it was the difference in the icing and the cake itself was not as moist.   Then he went on to say, "It's good, just not as good as your mother's." 

People always ask for the recipe for this cake and they are always surprised it starts with a cake mix, because it tastes and looks like a from scratch cake. However, the cake mix is dressed up a bit with a few family secrets.


 Here is what you will need for this cake:

1   15.25 butter cake mix (Be sure to get the full size cake mix and not the reduced size some companies are now marketing)

3 large eggs

1 cup Sprite or 7 Up

1 stick of butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla

Icing

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup white corn syrup

3 egg whites

1 tsp. baking powder

2 cups shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all of the cake ingredients together with a wire whisk until well blended. Don't use an electric mixer for this.  Mama says it makes a cake dry when you beat the batter up too long. Butter and flour 2 8 inch round cake pans.  You  can use 2  9 inch cake pans, but the cake won't be as high. Divide cake batter between pans. 

Place in oven and bake for 25 minutes.

While the cakes cool, make the icing.

Place the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a sauce pan on medium heat.  Using a candy thermometer cook to the soft ball stage or 240 degrees, stirring constantly.  The mixture should become almost clear.   You can also do this in the microwave to make this step easier.  Cook on high for 4 minutes, remove and stir well and then cook for about 3 more minutes on high.  This could vary by a minute or two depending on the power of your microwave. It still needs to reach the soft ball stage.  Now you will need your electric mixer for the this next step and I love my KitchenAid Mixer  for recipes like this! 

With an electric mixer beat the egg whites with the baking powder until it reaches the soft peak stage. 

  

 

Slowly pour in the syrup and keep mixing until the icing stands in peaks.  This takes some time to accomplish so don't give up on it. Just keep beating it and eventually the peaks will form.

Place one of the cake layers on a pretty cake plate.

Frost the top of the first layer and sprinkle with 1/2 cup coconut

 

  Place the other layer on top of the first and frost the entire cake.

 Place the other layer on top of the first and frost the entire cake. the top and sides of the cake.

Sprinkle the rest of the coconut over the top and sides of the cake!

Mama's Southern Coconut Cake!



Blueberry Cream Cheese Pound Cake!

I love anything with blueberries and of course, my favorite ingredient, cream cheese, so this recipe was right up my alley!!!   I used fresh blueberries, but you could use frozen also!!!  This is the perfect breakfast or brunch cake or a great coffee cake!!!     This is a super moist pound cake!!!  It's great served plain or top it with a scoop of ice cream!!!

Here is what you will need:

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1//2 cup vegetable or canola oil

1 pkg. yellow cake mix

1  (3 oz.) pkg. instant vanilla pudding mix

2 cups fresh blueberries (could use frozen)

4 large eggs

3 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Spray a 9 inch Bundt pan with nonstick baking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and oil with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.   Add in cake mix, instant pudding mix, eggs and vanilla.  Beat on medium until well blended.  Fold in the blueberries. 

Pour into the prepared pan and place in preheated oven.   Bake for 60 minutes or until a pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  remove from oven and cool in the pan for 20 minutes.  

Cool completely and sprinkle confectioner's sugar over the top!!!

Slice and serve!!!  It's yummy!!!  

Fruit Cocktail Cake...a Blast from the Past!

This "Fruit Cocktail Cake"  takes me back in time.  I can't specifically tell you exactly the period of time, but it must have been the seventies and maybe even the eighties.  I remember my mother making this cake quite often back then and after I was married I made it also, because it was always one of my husband's favorites.  Then, for some reason, we just quit making it.   I am not sure why though, because it's a really delicious cake and it's relatively easy also. Since so many of our readers have asked about this cake, I decided to revive it.  

Here is what you will need:

2 cups self rising flour

2 eggs

1  1/2 cups white sugar

1 (15 oz.) can of fruit cocktail, undrained

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

Frosting

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

1 cup evaporated milk

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup pecans, chopped

2 cups flaked coconut or a 7 oz. bag

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Mix the flour, eggs, sugar, fruit cocktail, vanilla and cinnamon together until well blended.  Pour into a well greased 9"x13" baking pan.   Place in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes. 

Near the end of the baking time, prepare the frosting.   Place the butter, milk, white and brown sugars, vanilla in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.  Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute.  Reduce the heat and add the pecans and coconut.  Mix well. 

Remove the cake from the oven.  I like to take a fork or wooden skewer and poke just a few holes in the cake to allow some of the frosting to run down into the cake, but you don't have to do that step.  Pour the frosting evenly over the warm cake.  Make sure the coconut and pecans are evenly distributed.  Now, some recipes end here.  You cut it and eat it, but I remember that Mama always cranked that oven up to broil and put the cake back in for just a few minutes to toast the pecans and coconut and sort of caramelized the sugars a little.  

 It just really makes all the difference to me in the taste of the cake, but you have to watch it really close, because it will burn those pecans in no time at all!   This step is optional, but I do recommend it!  

Now, you can cut it and eat it and I do think it is so good warm right out of the oven! 

 I like to put a cherry on top to serve since that is the best part of fruit cocktail to me and it's pretty!





Orange Juice Cake!

 

This "Orange Juice Cake" is a deliciously moist pound cake that has just a hint of citrus flavor.  If you want a more definitely orange flavor, add the orange flavoring to it!  This cake is great for a breakfast or brunch cake, a dessert served with fresh fruit or a scoop of ice cream or an afternoon snack!  The flavor actually improves as it sits! 

 Here is what you will need:

1 (18.5 oz.) box butter or yellow cake mix
1 (3.5 oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
4 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. orange flavoring (optional for a more distinct orange flavor)

Glaze:
1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup powdered sugar for garnish


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Spray a large Bundt pan or tube pan with nonstick baking spray (like Baker's Joy).  

In a large mixing bowl, mix the cake mix, dry pudding mix, orange juice, oil, eggs, vanilla and orange flavoring.  Beat for about 3 minutes with an electric mixer.   Pour into the prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a pick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove cake and allow to cool in pan while you prepare the glaze.

Combine the butter, sugar and orange juice in a sauce pan and boil while stirring for 2 minutes or you can microwave the mixture in a glass bowl for about 3-4 minutes. 

With a skewer poke holes in the cake while still in the pan.  Pour the warm glaze over all and let this sit for about 30 minutes to cool, then turn out onto a cake plate. 

 

 When completely cool, sprinkle the top with powdered sugar!

 

This is good served plain or with fresh fruit or a scoop of ice cream! 

 

  

 

 

 

  



Old Fashioned Yellow Cake with Chocolate Icing!

A simple yellow cake with a very simple chocolate icing is such a uncomplicated thing, but for some it's one of the best cakes you can make.    Those who are partial to this cake remember it being made by their mother's or grandmother's back when cakes were made from scratch and various ingredients to bake with were fairly limited.   My mother says this is the cake my grandmother made when she baked a cake for a birthday or some other sort of celebration and even though Mama baked all kinds of cakes when I was growing up, I do remember this being one of my favorites.  I am not really much of a milk drinker and never have been, but this is one cake that I like to have big glass of ice cold milk with. 

The key to this cake is the boiled icing, not so much the cake itself.   This is chocolate icing like my grandmother would have made, without confectioner's sugar, because they didn't have such a thing back then.  Making icing without confectioner's sugar, is tricky and not something most folks who write about food on the Internet have done much of.  I know, because I checked.  We can all thank my mother for remembering how to make chocolate icing, that you don't end up having to cut out like fudge, without using powdered sugar.

Here is what you will need for this cake: 

1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 cup buttermilk

2 tsp. vanilla

Chocolate Icing

1/2 cup unsweetened powdered cocoa.

1 cup half and half cream

4 cups white sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbs. light corn syrup

1 stick of butter

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer.  Mix in eggs one at a time.   Sift flour, baking powder, soda and salt together in another bowl. 

Gradually add the 1 cup flour at a time alternating with the buttermilk.  Stir in the vanilla.  Do not over mix.  Just mix until ingredients are well blended.

Prepare three 9" cake pans by spraying them well with nonstick baking spray that has flour in it or grease and flour the pans.   I also like to cut a circle of wax paper or parchment paper and place in the bottom of each pan and spray it.  

Pour the batter evenly between the three pans.  Place in oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to sit about 10 minutes before turning out to cool.

While the cakes cool, prepare the icing.

To prepare the icing, place cocoa, half and half and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir constantly.  When the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is almost boiling add salt and corn syrup.  Bring it to a boil and then lower the heat and cook, stir with a whisk constantly, until it reaches a soft ball stage.   This takes about 5 minutes.  To see if it's at a soft ball stage, drop a little in a glass of cold water and if it balls up, it's there or you can use a candy thermometer to determine this.  

Remove from the heat and add butter and vanilla.  Whisk until butter is melted and smooth.  Allow to cool.  The icing should be just barely warm.  Using an electric mixer, beat the icing until it is a smooth spreadable consistency. 

Place the cake layers on a cake plate, icing the tops of each one and then pour the rest of the icing over the top and smooth down the sides.  

  Old Fashioned Yellow Cake with Chocolate Icing!

 



Egg Nog Pound Cake!

I have had several requests for a good recipe for this "Egg Nog Pound Cake"!  Even if you are not a huge lover of egg nog, you will still enjoy this cake, because it doesn't taste exactly like the drink that is so common during the holidays.  

We have always been more of the boiled custard drinkers in my family during holidays, instead of egg nog, but egg nog really is good to bake with for cakes and cookies. 

 Feel free to use your own homemade nog in this recipe or buy a good brand at the grocery.  They usually stock it during the holidays in the refrigerator section.  

I used one made by Southern Comfort in vanilla spice flavor and I must say it was one of the best store bought egg nogs I have ever tasted. 

 Here is what you will need for this cake:

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup oil (vegetable or canola)

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1  1/2 cups cold egg nog

1 tsp. lemon extract

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Tbs. of good Kentucky bourbon (optional, if you do not use it, add an extra teaspoon of vanilla)

2 cups coarsely chopped pecans, divided

Egg Nog Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

5 Tbs. egg nog

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

***You can substitute 1 tablespoon of bourbon for 2 tablespoons of the egg nog in the glaze, if you like the flavor it gives and you are not serving children. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and oil for about 2 minutes.  Gradually add in sugar and beat for about 5 more minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time and beat after each one just until the yellow disappears.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon.  Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, alternating with egg nog and ending with the flour.  Mix on low speed just enough to blend all ingredients.  Stir in flavorings and bourbon (if using) and 1 cup of the pecans). 

Generously grease a Bundt pan or a 10-inch tube pan. Several of you have mentioned my use of Temptations bakeware lately and I must admit I am hooked. I used my Temptations Bundt pan for this and I love it!  I still spray it with the nonstick spray though even though they say with Temptations you don't have to.  With a cake like this, you do need to.  The nonstick baking spray with flour, like Baker's Joy, works great for this. 

 Pour the batter in the pan and be sure to spread evenly.  Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour and 10 to 15 minutes.   After 45 minutes, you may need to loosely lay a piece of foil over the top to prevent from browning too much.   Test with a pick inserted in the center and when it comes out clean, the cake is done.  This is a dense cake and may appear to be done, but still need baking a bit more in the center, so it's best to test with the pick.

Remove from oven and allow to cool on the counter in the pan for at least an hour before turning out onto a cake plate.  It's best to take a sharp knife and run just around the edges to loosen first.

Cool completely before adding the glaze.

To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar and egg nog in a bowl until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and nutmeg. 

Drizzle over the cake and sprinkle the other cup of chopped pecans over the top.





 

Blackberry Wine Cake!

  

This is  a cake I have had several people request, but it's not a cake I was familiar with.  It sounded really good though, so I decided to try it.  I must say it was easy enough to make and the only thing I was worried about was getting it out of the pan without sticking.   However, it came out with no problem at all. I did say a little prayer before I flipped it though.   This is one cake that just gets moister as time goes by and that is always a good thing and it's got a really delicious flavor.  This is what you will need:

1 cup chopped pecans

white cake mix (be sure to get the full 18 oz. size)

3 oz. blackberry gelatin (if you can't find blackberry, you can use black cherry, because blackberry is hard to find sometimes)

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup blackberry wine

1 tsp. vanilla

Glaze

1 stick butter

3/4 cup blackberry wine

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups confectioners sugar
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Spray a 10 inch Bundt pan well with nonstick baking spray, preferably the kind that has flour in it.  Be sure to spray the stem of the pan also.

Sprinkle the chopped nuts in the pan evenly.

Combine the cake mix, gelatin, oil eggs, wine and vanilla.  Mix until it is well combined. Pour into the Bunt pan and shift it around so that it is evenly distributed. 

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. 

To make the glaze, combine the butter, 3/4 cup wine, and 1 cup of the sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat and add vanilla.  

 With a wooden skewer or a fork, poke holes in the cake while it's still in the pan and right out of the oven.  Pour 1/2 of the glaze over the cake while it's still in the pan.  Allow the cake to sit and absorb the liquid for about an hour.  Turn the cake onto your cake plate.  Use a cake plate with some room around the edges, because the glaze will run down around the cake to some extent.

 Add the rest of the sugar to the remainder of the glaze and let it stand and thicken enough to pour over the cake once it is turned out onto a plate and has cooled completely.  The glaze will thicken as it cools down, just don't get it too thick to pour, but make sure it's not too thin either or it will run off the cake.   Sprinkle with the cup of chopped pecans!











Sweet Potato Cake!

This is undoubtedly one of the best cakes you will ever make or eat!  Ok, I realize this might be subjective and just my opinion, but as you have probably noticed we make and therefore have to eat a lot of cake.  Therefore, I do consider myself a bit of an expert on what is a good cake...lol.  

The recipe for this cake is a very old family recipe that has been handed down through the decades.  It was always one of my mother's favorite cakes through the years and was usually brought to family reunions and special dinners and such.

This is such a moist and delicious tasting cake and it just gets better as it sits and soaks in that yummy icing.  You do not have to be a sweet potato eater to like this cake either.  My husband hates sweet potatoes and he loves this cake.

So have I enticed you enough to try this?  I hope so!  This is the perfect cake for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but why wait until then?  Make one now and give it a test run!   This is what you will need and my only advice is to follow the directions exactly for the best results:

1 1/2 cups oil

2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs, separated (reserve the whites)

4 Tbs. boiling water

2  1/2 cups all purpose flour

3 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. vanilla

1  1/2 cups grated raw sweet potatoes that have been peeled

Frosting

1 cup evaporated milk

1/2 cup butter ( 1 stick)

1 cup sugar

3 egg yolks

1 tsp. vanilla

1  1/2 cups flaked coconut

1 cup pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl mix the oil and sugar with an electric mixer unit smooth.  Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition. 

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together.   Add the boiling water and mix. Add the flour mixture to the oil and egg mixture and mix. Add in the vanilla.  Fold in the grated sweet potatoes.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they are stiff and form peaks.  Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until blended.

Prepare three 9" cake pans by lining the bottoms with parchment paper or wax paper and spraying them well with nonstick baking spray.  The type that contains flour works best for this.  Take my advice and do not skip this step!  This cake is very moist and can stick or the layers can break if you do not line your pans.  Divide the batter evenly among the pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  A pick inserted in the center should come out clean. 

Remove from oven and allow to cool before turning onto a cake plate.

Prepare frosting when the cakes have cooled by combining the evaporated milk, sugar, butter, egg yolks and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat.  Cook for about 12 minutes, stirring constantly or until the mixture has thickened. 

Remove from heat and add coconut.  Beat until cool and thick and spreading consistency. 

Stack cake layers on a cake plate and frost between layers, top and sides.   Garnish the top with the nuts.   This frosting sort of runs down the sides of the cake and you can spread it around the sides.  The consistency will be similar to the frosting you use on a German Chocolate cake.

 It's a beautiful thing! Sorry, but I just love this cake! 

  



Dr. Pepper Cake!

This cake recipe uses a favorite southern drink, Dr. Pepper, to make it exceptionally moist and yummy!   Dr. Pepper is a soft drink that you either love or can't stand it seems.  I like a good cold Dr. Pepper every now and then myself.   I think it's good to cook with, not only because of the carbonation, but because of the slightly peppery bite it has.   If you are not a Dr. Pepper fan, don't worry. because this cake doesn't end up tasting much like Dr. Pepper.  The Dr. Pepper just gives it a really nice light and moist texture and a good flavor.   

Here is what you will need:

1 box chocolate cake mix (I used Devils Food)

1 (3.4 oz.) box instant vanilla pudding

4 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

10 oz. Dr. Pepper

1 tsp. vanilla

Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

3-4 Tbs. Dr. Pepper (just enough to make the glaze thin enough to drizzle over the cake

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the cake mix, vanilla pudding, eggs, oil, Dr. Pepper and vanilla.   Mix just until all well combined.  Don't over mix.   Pour into a well greased Bundt pan.   Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the pan for about 20 minutes then invert onto a cake plate.

Stir together the powdered sugar, vanilla and just enough Dr. Pepper to make a glaze.  Drizzle over the cake.  Then sprinkle the chopped walnuts over the top.  





7-Up Cake!

If you aren't familiar with the 7-Up Cake, it's just one of the best pound cakes ever that is made with...yes, you guessed right...7-Up.   It's the same principle as the  Coca Cola Cake, in that the carbonation in the soda is what makes the cake rise, but other than that, the two cakes are totally different.   The 7-Up Cake is a lightly lemon flavored pound cake.  Some folks leave the icing off and serve it just plain or with some fruit.  That's ok I guess, but I love it with the icing. That's just what makes it great for me.   This is the 7-Up cake made from scratch.  Some make it with a cake mix and I can go either way, but I know that some of you think cake mixes are the Devil himself, so I went with scratch.  I honestly don't think baking a cake with a cake mix is any easier than from scratch.   The results might be a little more consistent for some who don't bake often though. 

 Here is what you need for this cake:

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup  shortening (can use vegetable oil)
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup 7-Up (could use another lemon-lime soda)

Icing
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. lemon extract
4-5 Tbs. half and half or milk
1 Tbs. lemon zest (optional, if you like more of a lemon zing)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter, shortening and sugar with an electric mixer.  Add eggs, one at a time. 

In another bowl sift together the flour, salt and baking soda.   Add 1 cup at a time to the wet mixture and beat just enough to mix well.  Don't over beat this or it will make the cake drier.   

Add in the vanilla and lemon extracts and fold in the 7-Up.

Pour batter into a large Bundt pan that has been greased and floured or sprayed with a nonstick spray for baking.  Don't forget the stem of the pan.   Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.   Check it at 1 hour.  A pick inserted in the center should come out clean.   It took about an hour and five minutes in my oven.  Don't over bake it.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan, until you can handle the pan safely.  Turn it out onto a cake plate and allow to cool before glazing.

To prepare the glaze, mix the powdered sugar with the other ingredients and stir together until smooth.

 Pour over the top of the cake and just let it run down the sides.  If you do not like as much icing as I do, you might not need to use all of this, but I like a nice thick glaze on mine.

Hummingbird Cake!

The Hummingbird Cake is one of the traditional southern cakes that most everyone loves, but it doesn't get baked quite as much as some of the others.   I am not completely sure why, except that recipes for it are not published as often and it's a little trickier to have success with.  However, don't let that stop you from trying it.  If you follow the directions in this recipe, you should have success.  The tricky part of the this cake, is that it is so moist, with the banana and the pineapple, it can fall apart.  It is traditionally a stacked, layer cake and preferably a three layer cake, although it can be made in two layers.  

The first known published recipe for the Hummingbird Cake was in 1978 in Southern Living Magazine and the cake won the Favorite Cake Award in 1978 at the Kentucky State Fair.   This is not that recipe, but a variation of it.  This is what you will need for your Hummingbird Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 cup oil (vegetable or canola)

2 cups sugar

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. vanilla

8 oz. crushed pineapple (drained)

2 cups very ripe bananas, mashed

2 cups chopped pecans, divided (can use walnuts)

Cream Cheese Frosting

2 (8 oz.) blocks of cream cheese (softened)

1 stick of butter, softened (1/2 cup)

2 lbs. confectioners sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the oil, sugar, and eggs.   Gradually stir in flour.  Add cinnamon and vanilla. 

Fold in the pineapple, mashed bananas and 1 cup of the pecans.  After it's well incorporated pour into three  round 9 inch prepared cake pans.

To prepare the pans, and this is a key to this cake turning out well,  cut three circles of either wax or parchment paper and place them in each cake pan.  It is very important to not skip this step.  This cake is so moist, it tends to break apart when you take it out of the pans.  The paper holds the layers together.    Spray the pans and the paper well with nonstick baking spray that contains flour, like Baker's Joy, or grease and flour the pans. 

Place the pans in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool before turning them out.

Prepare the cream cheese frosting while the cakes cool.  To make the cream cheese frosting, cream the cream cheese and the butter together with an electric mixer,  until fluffy.  Slowly add in the sugar until well incorporated.  Add the vanilla. 

Stack and frost your cake layers.  To finish, sprinkle the top with the other cup of chopped nuts.  Store this cake in the refrigerator if not serving immediately.





Milky Way Cake!

There is only one thing I can say about this cake...have mercy!  Also, forgive me if you are watching your calories!  This is one of the most decadent and wonderfully rich chocolate cakes I have ever made, but it's something you have to try, at least once.  I actually cut some of the sugar back in the original recipe.

The frosting really is a lot like the nougat filling in a Milky Way Bar and it's a great chocolate frosting to use for other cakes and even cupcakes.   Here is what you need for this cake and don't blame me, it's an old recipe I got years ago from someone else: 

7 Milky Way Candy Bars (regular size, 1.84 oz.)

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1  1/4 cup buttermilk

1 tsp. vanilla

2  1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

Frosting

2 cups sugar

1 cup evaporated milk

1 stick butter

1  (6 oz.( pkg. chocolate chips

1 (7 oz.) jar marshmallow cream

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream 1 stick of butter and the sugar and set aside.   

Melt 1 stick butter with the 7 Milky Way Candy Bars either in the microwave or in a double boiler.  I just microwaved them for a total of 2 minutes, stirring at 1 minute intervals. 

Stir the candy bars and the butter together until smooth.

Add the eggs one at a time to the sugar and butter mixture.  Add baking soda, salt, buttermilk and vanilla,  then add candy bar mixture.  Add flour a little at a time.  Beat just until all is incorporated.  Fold in nuts.

Pour into a well greased 9"x13" pan. Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 55 to 60 minutes or until pick inserted in center comes out clean. 

You can also bake this in 3 nine inch cake pans and stack the cake.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  This cake is harder to frost as a stack cake though, because of the consistency of the frosting.

Remove from oven and allow to cool.  While the cake is cooling, prepare the frosting.

In a heavy saucepan cook the sugar and evaporated milk until soft ball stage.  This requires boiling it for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn't stick or burn.  On a candy thermometer, soft ball stage is 235 to 245 degrees or you can drop a little in cold water and it will form a soft ball.

Once it reaches that stage, turn off the heat and add 1 stick butter, chocolate chips, and marshmallow cream.  Beat until smooth.   Remove from the heat and allow to cool before frosting cake.  While it's warm, it's too runny and will thicken and set as it cools, much like candy does. 

Spread the cool frosting over the cake.  It spreads really well once it cools.

  If you do a stacked cake, the frosting needs to be even cooler and more set so that it doesn't run off of the cake.