This page brings together five pineapple desserts that range from upside-down cupcakes to layered and frosted cakes.
Each recipe uses pineapple in a different way, from crushed fruit stirred into batter to pineapple added as a topping, filling, or soaking drizzle.
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- Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes
- Anti-Crabby Cake
- Church Cake
- Finger Lickin’ Good Cake
- Swedish Nut Cake
Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes
These pineapple upside-down cupcakes start with melted butter, brown sugar, maraschino cherries, and crushed pineapple layered into each muffin cup before the batter goes in. The cake mix is combined with reserved pineapple juice, eggs, and vegetable oil, then spooned over the fruit base so the cupcakes bake with a built-in topping that can be inverted after cooling.
The method is simple but specific: the muffin cups are filled about two-thirds full, baked until a toothpick comes out clean, and left to cool briefly before being run around the edges and turned out onto wax paper. A light dusting of confectioners’ sugar is optional for serving.
Get the full Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes recipe
Anti-Crabby Cake
Anti-Crabby Cake is a pineapple cake baked in an ungreased 9-by-13-inch glass pan, with undrained crushed pineapple mixed directly into the batter along with flour, sugar, eggs, and baking soda. The cake is baked until lightly golden, then topped with a creamy frosting made from cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk.
A useful detail in this recipe is the temperature contrast: the frosting is spread over the warm cake while it is still in the pan, then the cake is cooled and refrigerated before serving cold. The instruction not to grease the pan helps the cake bake and set in place.
Get the full Anti-Crabby Cake recipe
Church Cake
Church Cake combines banana muffin mix with eggs and milk for the cake base, then layers drained crushed pineapple over the cooled cake. On top of that goes a pudding mixture made from cream cheese, instant vanilla pudding, and milk, followed by a final layer of Cool Whip for a chilled dessert with several textures.
The method depends on cooling and layering in order. After baking the cake in a greased 9-by-13-inch dish, it must cool completely before the pineapple, pudding mixture, and whipped topping are spread on top. The finished cake is then chilled for at least a short time before serving.
Get the full Church Cake recipe
Finger Lickin’ Good Cake
Finger Lickin’ Good Cake uses yellow cake mix, undrained mandarin oranges, melted butter, oil, eggs, and crushed pineapple for a fruit-filled sheet cake baked in two round pans. After baking, the warm layers are poked all over so the reserved pineapple juice can be drizzled in and soak into the cake.
The frosting is made by stirring whipped topping with instant pudding mix, crushed pineapple, and shredded coconut until the pudding fully dissolves. The cakes are cooled before frosting, then stacked and coated on the top and sides, and served chilled so the topping stays firm.
Get the full Finger Lickin’ Good Cake recipe
Swedish Nut Cake
Swedish Nut Cake mixes eggs, flour, sugar, baking soda, vanilla, chopped nuts, and crushed pineapple with its juice into a single batter baked in a 9-by-13-inch dish. The result is a cake that already includes pineapple in the crumb, with more chopped nuts used later as a topping.
After the cake cools completely, the frosting is made by beating butter and cream cheese until smooth, then adding powdered sugar and vanilla until creamy. The frosting is spread over the cooled cake and finished with additional chopped nuts before slicing.
