Pineapple Dream Cake

For a while now, I've been looking for an easy dessert recipe using pineapple. Something that wasn't heavy, instead light and airy. I found this recipe for Pineapple Dream Cake on FruitCake Recipes.

Their recipe called for yellow cake, I used a white cake mix. Theirs called for Cool Whip but I whipped my own from heavy cream. The end result was very good! Both the cake and icing are light and airy.

This recipe would be great to make a trifle--bake the cake and cube it, and then layer it with vanilla pudding and the whipped cream/pineapple mix. :) Add in some blueberries and/or strawberries for color and you'd have a pretty springtime dessert!

Here is my version:

Pineapple Dream Cake

1 box white cake mix
3 eggs
1 -11 oz can of mandarin oranges, undrained
1/2 C. oil
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350*. Lightly spray a 9 x 13 cake pan with cooking spray.

Stir together all ingredients and pour into greased cake pan.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean --my cake baked for 30 minutes. Cool completely then top with pineapple frosting recipe. (below)

Frosting

12 oz heavy cream
2 TBSP sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
20 oz. can of crushed pineapple, undrained
1 lg. box of instant vanilla pudding.

To whip cream, chill a metal bowl and beaters for a few minutes before using. Pour the heavy cream into the bowl and beat until soft peaks form. Add in sugar and vanilla and continue beating until stiff peaks form.

To the whipped cream, add the crushed pineapple and dry vanilla pudding. Mix together until everything is well blended.

Spread frosting on cake. For the best taste, refrigerate for at least 2 hrs. Keep the leftovers refrigerated.

UPDATE: This cake was nice and moist the first day but after refrigerating it, it wasn't exactly dry but it wasn't as moist as I like a cake to be. So...I will definitely make this again but the next time I'm going to add one more can of mandarin oranges -that have been drained (reserve juice)-to the cake mix. Then, once the cake has cooled after baking, I'm going to poke some holes in it with a fork and pour the leftover mandarin orange juice over the cake, then frost it. I think that this will help to keep the cake a bit more moist. If you try this, please let me know how it works out.

MMM! Sweet Oranges

Everyone knows that you shouldn't go shopping when you are hungry but what happens when you are shopping and the food starts calling your name? Such is what happened on the last shopping trip to Sam's Club. I had my list in hand and was sticking to it...until was passed a huge bowl of freshly cut oranges packed in ice. I was trying really hard to stick to my planned budget but we wandered over to try the oranges anyway. From the first bite, my kids wanted me to buy a bag. After two more isles of "would you please buy a big bag of them?!?", I gave in. We now own a huge bag of oranges. I'm not upset about it because it could've been much worse--the kids could've been begging for candy or other junk. Instead, they wanted nature's own sweet treats.

Want a bite? MMM..they sure are juicy!


We have been enjoying them for breakfast and for dessert. With the loads of sweets that we've been eating lately, this is a really nice change.

Turkey Sloppy Joe Sandwiches

Things were quite hectic around here last night and the last thing that I wanted was to be was stuck in my kitchen for hours. I whipped up another easy-to-do family favorite--turkey sloppy joe sandwiches. I took the easy way out and served seasoned French fries alongside the sandwiches.

I used this recipe a lot when I was low-carbing by replacing the regular ketchup with Heinz low carb ketchup and the brown sugar with a low carb brown sugar substitute. Either way, it's really good.

Turkey Sloppy Joes

What you need:

olive oil

1/2c. celery, sliced (I omitted)

1/2c. onion, chopped

1/2c. red & green peppers,

chopped (I now use all green to

save $$)

2c. ground turkey, browned

1c. ketchup

3 Tbs. white vinegar

1Tbs. brown sugar, packed

1/2 tsp dry mustard-this is needed

but I did use regular spicy brown

mustard in a pinch and it worked

fine

8 hamburger buns

What you do:

Brown turkey in olive oil and drain well if there is any leftover grease in the pan.

Saute celery, onions & peppers, cook until tender.

Add cooked turkey, ketchup, vinegar, br. sugar & mustard. Reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes--doesnt really need to simmer that long if you don't have the time.

Spoon into buns. Enjoy!

Tuesdays with Dorie - Pumpkin Muffins

I was so excited to participate in my first Tuesdays with Dorie recipe. I was even more excited when I realized that we would be making pumpkin muffins. Thanks, Kelly of Sounding My Barbaric Gulp, for choosing a great recipe!

My family loves just about any type of pumpkin baked goods and this recipe didn't disappoint!

I added mini chocolate chips to half of the batch and to the other half, I added raisins. The pumpkin/chocolate chips satisfied my cravings for my new favorite flavor combination and the pumpkin/raisin combo made my husband a happy camper.


Like many other have commented, I had to adjust the baking time. Using silicone baking cups, I baked these muffins at 400* for 17 minutes. They turned out very moist; but, they are a more dense muffin, not light and airy. I had a few left over so I decided to freeze them. They weren't nearly as good warmed up again as they were the first day straight out of the oven. I would recommend only making what you are going to eat that same day.

Trick or Treat Toffee Grahams

Do you have to make something for an upcoming fall festival or bake sale? My recipe for toffee grahams is super easy and looks great packaged in bags with pretty bows!


Click on the title of the recipe to see full instructions on how to make them.