Pineapple Orange Spring Layer Cake Recipe to Celebrate Spring
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When spring hits and the days get longer and brighter, it is hard not to want to celebrate. In Minnesota winter feels like it lasts forever because it really is that long.
So very, very long.
When we finally start seeing the snow melting and the sun shining it is the perfect time to bake a cake and live it up! (Any excuse for me to bake). And what better cake than one that is light and fruity and just looks like spring? I got inspired by the Simply Citrus Cream Cake from Kraft but I put my own twist on it.
I have a baking buddy in my five year old son Warren. Baking without him makes him sad and looking at this recipe, I knew it would be one he would enjoy. There were plenty of ingredients to mix together and he did a great job helping me!
With just a simple pineapple cake mix some special additions like orange zest and sour cream, we created a fruity cake. After the batter was mixed together, the scents of pineapple and orange were impossible for him to resist. The batter smelled delicious!
Once the cakes had finished baking, it was super easy to create a delicious filling using COOL WHIP whipped topping, lemon JELLO pudding, milk and mandarin oranges. I stacked and filled the cakes, topping them with extra mandarin oranges for garnish.
Pineapple Orange Spring Layer Cake Recipe to Celebrate Spring #KraftTastemakers
Ingredients
- 1 pkg. 2-layer size pineapple, vanilla or yellow cake mix
- 1 pkg. 3.4 oz. JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
- 1 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup oil
- 3 eggs
- 2 Tbsp. orange zest
- 1 tub 8 oz. COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed
- 1 pkg. 3.4 oz. JELL-O Lemon Flavor Instant Pudding
- 1 cup milk
- 1 can 11 oz. mandarin oranges, drained and dried on paper towel
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans.
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In large bowl, beat cake mix, dry pudding mix, sour cream, water, oil, eggs and orange zest with mixer until blended. Pour into greased pans.
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Bake for 25 to 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans 10 min. Invert onto wire racks; gently remove pans. Cool cakes completely.
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Whisk jello and milk together in large bowl. Fold in COOL WHIP.
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Stack cake layers on plate, filling with half each of the COOL WHIP mixture and oranges. (Consider breaking up half the mandarin oranges and folding into the whipped topping for the middle layer) Frost top with remaining COOL WHIP mixture. Garnish with remaining oranges.
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Keep refrigerated.
By using a decorative cake stand it made the cake stand out and seem even more special. I love having special serving pieces. Desserts always look taste better from fancy dishes, don’t they?
I created a flower or sunburst pattern on the top with the mandarin oranges but placing them randomly on the top would have worked just as well.
Feel free to change up the flavors within the cake or pudding. A vanilla or yellow cake mix with lemon pudding or orange cake with vanilla pudding would also taste delicious. Experimenting is half the fun.
The hardest part will be resisting a second slice!
Get your spring baking on with Kraft! Be sure to check out all the great recipes at Kraft and don’t forget to follow them via Facebook and Twitter to stay connected.
Since Warren loves peanut butter, I think we’ll hit up other recipes like peanut butter cookies!
What do you love to bake to celebrate spring?
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Disclosure: This post was created for the Kraft Tastemaker Blogger Program. All thoughts remain my own and are not influenced by the monetary compensation received.
WOW! Oh I can’t wait to try this. I love your idea of changing up the flavors. I really want to try the orange cake with vanilla pudding. My kids love will love this because it’s made with Cool Whip. They aren’t to crazy about regular frosting. thanks for the recipe!
OMG delish!!!! my fave items too! will def be doing this recipe!
MMM this sounds delicious and perfect for spring!
Looks delicious, Pinned it!
This would surely win me over with my toddler, he loves cake and mandarin oranges, the picture’s make me very hungry for dessert, thanks for sharing a great recipe!
looks so yummy. PINNED. I love Kraft recipes, they are the best.
YUM!!!
I love anything creamy and this sounds creamy!
ooh this looks really good i have an entire drawer in the fridge full of oranges i could definitely do this!
Your baking buddy is quite talented!
The cake looks beautiful.
I will eat anything with COOL WHIP!
oh my my!! This looks scrumptious! It looks so cute I can’t believe we can make this. I hope it turns out as great as yours. thank you for sharing the recipe.
Ooh this looks sooo good!!!
Lovely cake. Good flavors.
Ohhhh, YUM! You’re so creative! And totally right about food tasting better from fancy dishes, too! 🙂
I hope its tastes as good as it looks,I think I can do this
This looks absolutely delicious! I’d love to eat all the oranges on top!!
Looks amazingly good. I want to just grab a plate of it from that screen
Boy does this cake look and sound delicious! Makes my mouth water thinking about the flavors of pineapple, orange and lemon. Yum!
That looks good! I been looking at different types of ways of making pies/cakes/desserts. I am not a pineapple lover though, so does it have a strong pineapple taste or does the orange and lemon help blend it for a tropical flavor?
Never really thought of using Cool Whip as a cake frosting.
That looks absolutely scrumptious, Emilie!