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Pineapple Cake is bursting with sweet pineapple and topped with cream cheese frosting for a moist, summery cake perfect for any occasion. Add in some coconut for an extra tropical flavor!
If you caught my recipe for Chocolate Zucchini Muffins, you may remember that my sweet Elle has been setting up a mini bakery cart in our driveway – complete with lemonade and gum balls.
One of the most popular desserts she’s sold so far is this super easy pineapple cake that comes from my stepmom’s mother.
When Sue sent it over to me via text, I was honestly a bit skeptical because of how simple everything was, but she assured me that it was delish and always gets rave reviews.
Luckily, I had everything on hand, so Elle and I whipped it together at the last minute for her little bakery stand and everyone that bought a slice loved it!
It was honestly the perfect recipe for Elle to pretty much whip together on her own since it’s so simple. Mama just handled some of the measuring and the oven.
It’s sweet and super moist, plus it has cream cheese frosting, which in my opinion, is never a bad thing!
MY SUPER EASY PINEAPPLE CAKE RECIPE
I love making all types of cake recipes, from my favorite Cream Cheese Pound Cake to the Best Chocolate Cake recipe.
But I don’t always love having to pull out a long list of ingredients or having to turn to my tricks for bringing butter to room temperature to bake a cake. Especially when I’m headed to a summer potluck, I want a super simple cake recipe I can make with almost no effort.
But it still has to be delicious, ok?
This Pineapple Cake recipe fits the bill perfectly. It’s almost as easy as making Doctored Cake Mix but doesn’t use a mix at all!
(If you’re looking for a cake that does use a mix, try my easy pineapple upside-down cake!)
The secret to this super easy cake is a big ol’ can of pineapple.
The pineapple is NOT drained, so it serves as almost all of the liquid in the batter. This recipe doesn’t even use any oil! Just a handful of dry ingredients, a couple of eggs, and a 20-ounce can of pineapple.
I usually like to use crushed pineapple when I’m making Pineapple Cake, but sometimes I’ll change things up and use a can of pineapple tidbits instead for a different texture.
I also love to add some coconut to the batter to add another level of tropical, summery flavor. Consider the coconut optional, though, if it’s not your favorite!
MAKING PINEAPPLE SHEET CAKE
Another reason I love taking this Pineapple Cake to cookouts is because it is a sheet cake, so it’s super easy to transport and cut into any size pieces you need.
Pineapple Cake is SUPER moist, so it really does best when kept as a sheet cake. A cake this moist would be hard to turn into a layer cake, so keep it simple and bake it as a sheet cake, ok?
That doesn’t mean you can’t make it pretty, though! Top this beauty with a tangy cream cheese frosting and garnish it with some maraschino cherries, coconut, or pieces of pineapple.
Serve Pineapple Cake at your next barbecue alongside Amish Macaroni Salad and some Cherry Limeade Slushies and you’ll be the hit of the neighborhood.
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Pineapple Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 20 ounces canned crushed pineapple in pineapple juice undrained
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup coconut optional
For the Icing
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. (I also line the cake pan with parchment since this is a sticky/super moist cake)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
- In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, crushed pineapple (do not drain the pineapple), vanilla and coconut, if using.
- Add the pineapple mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.
- Remove cake to a wire rack and cool completely.
- To make the cream cheese icing, beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer on medium-speed for 3-4 minutes.
- Turn the mixer down to low and gradually add in the powdered sugar.
- Add vanilla and beat for an additional 2-3 minutes before spreading on cooled cake.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Which pineapple is best for this recipe crushed pineapple in just juice or crushed pineapple in heavy syrup or doesn’t it matter?
Hello! Per the recipe card, you’ll want to use crushed pineapple in juice. Happy baking!
Jamie
Hello! Can this be made into cupcakes?
Hello! I haven’t attempted this recipe as cupcakes, so I am not sure of the result. If you happen to give it a try, I’d love to know how they turned out. Thanks so much for stopping by.
-Jamie
I made this as is except I added a teaspoon of cinnamon to it. It was so good! I think if you added nuts to it it would be just like a hummingbird cake.
So happy to hear you enjoyed the cake, Eleni! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
I LOVE this recipe!! it is perfection. I added a half cup of chopped pecans the 2nd time I made it and it was even better!
Yay! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback.
-Jamie
My grandson loves pineapple, I’ll make it for him this weekend. It sure looks delicious!
Thanks so much for stopping by, Hope! I appreciate you taking the time to comment. Happy Baking!
-Jamie
I am so happy I found this recipe. I’m not a fan of upside down pineapple cake but when I made this OH MY GOSH! Everywhere I take it I’m always asked for the recipe so I send them straight to your website. Thanks for an awesome cake!
So happy to hear you enjoyed the cake, Karen! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
Looks delicious. Can you tell me how many grams is the cup that you use? Thank you
Hello! I don’t typically bake in grams, so I am not sure of the correct metric conversions for this recipe. Hopefully someone else in the comments can help you!
Jamie
Usually US cup is about 238 ml in metric system, so it contains about 150-160 gram of flour (depending on which sort you are using — all-purpose, whole-grain, etc)
What kind of coconut should I use? Desiccated coconut?
Hello! You can use whatever you have and like best. Sweetened flaked coconut works well but unsweetened would probably be fine, too. Happy baking.
Jamie
This is fantastic! I made it exactly as is, and it’s very, very good.
So happy to hear you enjoyed the cake! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
I love pineapple desserts! This cake looks so moist and delicious! Perfect with a cup of coffee ♥
Thanks so much for stopping by, Natalie! I appreciate you taking the time to comment. Happy Baking!
-Jamie