Do Nothing Cake (Pineapple Cake With Coconut Topping)

I was fascinated by the name of this cake. As always, am on the look out for simple, easy and straightforward recipes. Though I'd like to challenge myself in the kitchen occasionally, just to keep things interesting, I'm a big time fan of simple recipes. As is life is complicated most of the time, so why unnecessary add things to overcomplicate it, right ;)?

As the name suggests, it's almost a “do nothing cake”. I said almost, because there are a few steps, but those are pretty basic. You don't need any fancy gadgets or even an electric beater for this recipe. I should say the the effort and outcome relationship, for this cake is disproportional. The effort is minimum and the outcome is fabulous!

More than a cake, this is a dessert! The texture and taste is really good! It's ideal for a big crowd or potluck party or when you are in a mood to entertain. I'm sure you will be happy with this recipe. Do give it a try and see for yourself.

Not convinced yet, try this, there is no butter or any other fat in the cake, how about that? Butter is used only in the icing. It's like a dump cake, where you dump all the ingredients in a simple bowl, mix it and bake it.

Here is the recipe…

Combine crushed pineapple, sugar, vanilla extract and eggs, till it's mixed well…

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Add flour and baking soda. Gently mix till it becomes a smooth batter…

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Grease a 9×13 inch (23×33 cm) pan with oil. Pour the batter into into oiled tin. Bake at 350 F (175 C) oven for 30 – 40 minutes (refer notes) or until center of the cake is done…

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Cook butter, evaporated milk and sugar until thickened, about 5 minutes, stirring often…

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Add nuts and coconut…

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While cake is still hot, poke it with a skewer to help frosting soak into cake. Immediately pour frosting over it…

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Recipe adapted from here

Please read “notes” section before trying the recipe

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Do Nothing Cake (Pineapple Cake With Coconut Topping)

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Course: Dessert

Servings: 16

Author: Maria Jose Martin

Ingredients

• ▢ CAKE:
• ▢ 2 cups Plain flour
• ▢ 2 tsp Baking soda
• ▢ 2 cups Sugar – (refer notes)
• ▢ 2 Eggs
• ▢ 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 tins of 234 gms each Canned pineapple
• ▢ FROSTING:
• ▢ 1 stick Unsalted butter (113 gms)
• ▢ 3/4 cup Evaporated milk
• ▢ 1 cup Sugar (refer notes)
• ▢ 1 cup Chopped nuts (refer notes)
• ▢ 1 cup Coconut ((unsweetened) shredded)

Instructions

• ▢
  CAKE:
• ▢
  Preheat oven to 175 C, 10 mins before baking.
• ▢
  Reserve the liquid from one of the pineapple cans and discard the liquid from the other. Crush together the pineapple pieces with the reserved liquid in a food processor, till it's in a pulp form.
• ▢
  Combine crushed pineapple, sugar, vanilla extract and eggs, till it's mixed well. Add flour and baking soda. Gently mix till it becomes a smooth batter.
• ▢
  Grease a 9×13 inch (23×33 cm) pan with oil. Pour the batter into into oiled tin. Bake at 350 F (175 C) oven for 30 – 40 minutes (refer notes) or until center of the cake is done.
• ▢
  While cake is still hot, poke it with a skewer to help frosting soak into cake. Immediately pour frosting over it. Let the cake rest for an hour for the icing to completely soak it.
• ▢
  FROSTING:
• ▢
  Cook butter, evaporated milk and sugar until thickened, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Add nuts and coconut.

Notes

I used only 1 cup sugar for the cake batter, instead of 2 cups.
I used chopped walnuts for this recipe and I used only 1/2 cup (measured after chopping). You can use any nuts of your choice.
I used 1 cup sugar for icing and felt it was a bit too sweet. Next time, I might use only 2/3 – 3/4 cup of sugar for icing.
My cake was ready in 20-25 mins, so keep a close watch after 20 mins.
Can be kept at room temp for a day, for longer storage refrigerate in an airtight container. While serving, MW for 15-20 seconds.

Tried this recipe? Let others know by…mentioning @mariasmenu or tagging #mariasmenu

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