Pineapple & Cherry Cake..A simple Vanilla Cake transformed

Hello everyone. Winter in New England is not very kind. Several snow storms and bone chilling temperatures keep you trapped indoors, unless if you enjoy winter sports, which no one in our family does. Thank God for indoor playgrounds, malls and of course some wonderful friends. We get our share of entertainment in this otherwise not so interesting winters. But then again, I am thankful for the winters, cause if they weren’t any cold days, we really would have nothing to look forward to in the summer. 🙂

For today’s post I am sharing this beautiful pineapple and cherry cake I had made for a new year’s eve get-together. If you are looking for an eggless recipe to make this cake, here is my fresh fruit cake I made a while ago. The recipe below uses a simple vanilla cake and transforms it into a beautiful and delicious pineapple cake. The cake was moist and well liked by all.

Here is how I made it

Ingredients:

For the cake

All purpose flour – 1 1/2 cup

Sugar – 1 cup

butter or oil – 1/2 cup

baking powder – 1 1/2 tsp

salt – 1/4 tsp

eggs – 2 large

milk – 1/2 cup

vanilla extract – 1/2 tsp

For the frosting

Heavy Whipping cream – 2 cups (You can also use store bought already whipped cream)

Pineapple slices – 1, 20 oz., can

Cherry – canned, as needed

Strawberry or cherry jam – for filling, as needed

Sprinkles – for garnish, optional

Method:

1. Lets bake the vanilla cake first because it needs to cool down completely before you start frosting it. Preheat your oven to 350 F.
2. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder and keep aside.
3. Cream together the butter and sugar and slowly add in the eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Make sure not to over mix.
4. Gently fold in the dry ingredients and mix everything until just combined.
5. Grease an 8 inch pan and dust it with flour or line with parchment paper. Pour in the cake mixture and gently tap it on the counter so that there are no air bubbles.
6. Bake it for 30 – 35 minutes till a toothpick inserted in the center of the oven comes out clean.
7. Now let this cake cool completely and we will start working on the frosting in the meanwhile.
8. Take the chilled whipping cream and beat it for at least 3 – 5 minutes till it has doubled in volume. Be careful not to over mix or you will end up with butter. Stop when you see stiff peaks. Keep in the fridge to chill until ready to use. I have not added any sugar to the frosting so as to enjoy the natural sweetness of pineapple here.
9. Once the cake has cooled down, we can start frosting it. Cut the cake into two layers (or three layers, if you like)
10. Now spread some pineapple syrup from the can on the first layer. This is done to keep the cake moist and spread a layer of cherry jam and top with finely chopped pineapple slices.
11. Cover this with the other cake layer, spread some pineapple syrup and cover the whole cake with whipped cream, making sure to smooth out the edges in the process. Now let the cake rest in the fridge for another 15 minutes.
12. Finally, smooth out all the cream to ensure the cake is completely covered. Now decorate the cake with pineapple slices and cherry. Use your imagination and preference.
13. Lastly, add some sprinkles. This is totally optional.
14. Your beautiful cake is ready. Keep it in the fridge, until ready to serve.

So that is how I made this beautiful cake and welcomed the new year.

I hope this year is just as beautiful and sweet for you, as the cake above. Thanks for sticking out with me.

Let me know if you try this out.

Love,

Ritu. 🙂