I made this cake back in January. The weather started turn extra dreary and I often daydreamed about warm weather, that translated into pineapple coconut cake. I bought a can of not crushed pineapple. I spent about 5 minutes chopping it myself. Save yourself 5 minutes and buy crushed if you want your cake laced with bits of pineapple. I used one cup of pineapple juice that I strained from a 20 oz can of pineapple rings. I purchased extra large coconut flakes that can be found in the natural food section. It looks way prettier than thinner shredded coconut. You can also buy fresh coconut, remove the shell, chop, flake it with a knife, and toast the coconut yourself. Cray-zay! I used to make her labor intensive coconut cake recipe from time to time for very special occasions.
How to Toast Coconut
- Evenly spread flaked coconut on a sheet pan.
- Bake at 325F for 5-8 minutes.
- If you notice the coconut is not toasting evenly, give it a little mix bringing the darker coconut towards the center of the pan.
- Check often to prevent burning.
- Let cool on the pan.
Pineapple Coconut Cake
Ingredients
- 20 oz can of crushed pineapple
- 2 cups toasted coconut
- Yellow cake mix plus ingredients needed to prepare the mix
- One jar of white frosting
Instructions
- Drain the pineapple and save the juice.
- In the cake mix recipe, substitute the water for the pineapple juice.
- Prepare the cake according to the instructions on the box.
- Beat in the half of the pineapple bits at the end. Save the rest for another time.
- Allow the cake to cool.
- Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the white frosting.
- Frost the cake.
- Decorate with toasted coconut.
This is a perfect cake for tea or a garden party on a warm day. If you’re a novice cake maker, coconut cake is most forgiving because you can cover all of your mistakes with beautiful toasted coconut. Choosing to save time and not sacrificing flavor is what Bake Smarter, Not Harder. “Extraordinary food is the kind that’s made to match the memories of who we eat it with.” Tweet this! Managing to keep time and money on your side while we do it…that’s just the icing on the cake. Let me show you my methodology on cooking, and how I save money while I’m in the kitchen. I hope you find relief from the winter while eating this pretty summer cake. If you’ve found value in this post please share it with the social links below. See you tomorrow for another cake hack!
