Pina Colada Cake

Last year, a former co-worker Nancy came back to P-town for a brief visit. Pam and I got together and fixed dinner and dessert. I put together spaghetti and meatballs and she fixed the salad, bread and to-die-for dessert. Andy ate his dessert when we returned home and he had such a fit over how good it was, I asked Pam to fix one for his groom's cake when we married. The cake she made was a sheet cake and she used pineapple slices and cherries on top. We enjoyed every single bite of it.

Andy's Pina Colada Groom's Cake is shown behind Hunter, who was checking out the food table.

The other day I thought I'd fix Andy a cake and I searched for the cook book I thought the recipe came from with no luck. I knew Coco Lopez was one of the main ingredients, so I went straight to the source. This one was prepared in my Bundt cake pan and I used crushed pineapple to top it with. It turned out really good and it's disappearing rather quickly! I used two varieties of rum just to see how it would turn out...and it turned out pretty darned good!


INGREDIENTS:

• 1 (18¼ or 18½-ounce) package yellow cake mix*  
• 1 (4-serving size) package instant vanilla flavor pudding mix  
• 1 (15-ounce) can Coco Lopez^® Cream of Coconut  
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons rum  
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil  
• 4 eggs  
• 1 (8-ounce)* can crushed pineapple, well drained 

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350°. In large mixer bowl, combine cake mix, pudding mix, ½ cup cream of coconut, ½ cup rum (I used Mango flavored rum here), oil and eggs. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. 

Stir in pineapple. Pour into well-greased and floured 10-inch fluted tube or tube pan. 

Bake 50 to 55 minutes. 

Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan. 

With a table knife or skewer, poke holes about 1 inch apart in cake almost to bottom. (Next time I'll use the handle end of a wooden spoon like I do with a "poke cake" to let more of the coconut goodness ooze inside of the cake)

Combine remaining cream of coconut and remaining 2 tablespoons rum (I used Bacardi Gold rum here); slowly spoon over cake. 

Chill thoroughly. Garnish as desired. (*I bought a 15 oz. can of crushed pineapple and used the remaining to top the cake with.)

Store in refrigerator. 

**If cake mix with "pudding in" is used, omit pudding mix.

Source: Coco Lopez