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Do Nothing Cake




When a friend brought this to a church supper, EVERYONE insisted on getting the recipe. Very moist and delicious.. This really is just about a do nothing cake, unless you count walking across the street to the neighbor's to borrow sugar! LOL! So simple and delicious and MOIST! Now I must cut some to take to the neighbors before it is gone. I love the way the icing soaks into the cake and makes it so moist. I poked holes in the cake so it could soak in easier. BTW, when the cake came out of the oven, it was the prettiest golden color I have ever had a cake to be.

Do Nothing Cake

Ingredients:
  •     2 cups sugar
  •     2 cups flour
  •     2 eggs
  •     1 teaspoon baking soda
  •     1 teaspoon vanilla
  •     16 ounces crushed pineapple, undrained

Icing:
  •     1/2 cup butter
  •     1 cup sugar
  •     3/4 cup evaporated milk
  •     1 cup coconut
  •     1 cup nuts
  •     1 teaspoon vanilla


Directions:
  1. Place first 6 ingredients in a bowl & mix until blended with spoon.
  2. Pour into 13x9 inch cake pan.
  3. Bake at 350°F 35-40 minutes.
  4. For Icing: Mix butter, sugar and evaporated milk together and cook over medium heat until a little thickened. (This usually takes about 5 minutes at a boil).
  5. Remove from heat and add remaining ingredients.
  6. Pour over hot cake.

37 comments for "Do Nothing Cake"

  1. Too sweet. Cut down to about 1/2 C sugar, and add 2 Tbsp extra virgin coconut oil. Great with coffee.

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    Replies
    1. Reduce the sugar in the icing or cake batter?

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    2. I do agree. The sugar ratio to flour is super sweet. But, what does adding the coconut oil do to the cake? The icing already adds the needed moisture.

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    3. It doesn't call for coconut oil but (grated) coconut.

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    4. It doesn't call for coconut oil but (grated) coconut.

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  2. AP, because you're adding baking soda.

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  3. Do you need to spray Pam in the cake pan before pouring the mixture in?

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  4. Maybe change the name? I was expecting something more like a dump cake. There are a lot of things to do for a cake called "do nothing"

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    1. I don't think there's a lot to do at all. What were you expecting based on the title? A cake to just materialize? A dump cake usually uses cake mix, and though everyone has their own opinion, I personally don't like all the preservatives and chemicals in them. This recipe is as simple as it gets for a scratch cake, and I'd feel much better feeding this to my family (with the sugar slightly reduced, maybe). The reason this is called "do nothing" is because it's a one-step, one-bowl cake recipe with a pour-on frosting. That's pretty easy for someone who actually enjoys baking.

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    2. I enjoy baking and I agree with Molly. It's an easy recipe, but there are several just as easy or easier cake recipes so the title does seem somewhat misleading. Especially because there are a lot of baking novices out there. It looks delicious though and I can't wait to try it!

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  5. I dont know if my post went through so I'll ask again.

    Am I correct that there is no milk within the batter?
    And after mixing all of the ingredients together is this enough to fill up a 13in pan?

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    Replies
    1. Chef Mel.......There is evaporated milk in the recipe. And yes, there is enough to fill a 13x9 pan. Hope this helps!!!

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    2. So, the moisture in the cake is provided only by the can of crushed pineapple? The evaporated milk not in the batter, but is in the icing. If I am interpreting this wrong, please let me know. I plan on making this over the weekend.

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  6. I dont know if my post went through so I'll ask again.

    Am I correct that there is no milk within the batter?
    And after mixing all of the ingredients together is this enough to fill up a 13in pan?

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  7. Perfect just the way it is! My hubby and I loved it! Thanks for sharing:)

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  8. I made this cake yesterday for Sunday dinner today. The frosting had crystallized and was hard so I broiled it just before serving and it was good but what did I do wrong? Did I cook the syrup too long or is that what happens the next day. I served it to 9 people and they loved it. I used the 1 1/2 C. of sugar and 2 T. of coconut oil and it seemed perfect.

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  9. My cake turned out perfect. One last thing I did was toast the coconut frosting after I pour over the cake. High heated oven for five minutes! Thanks for sharing!

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  10. Instead of using the regular sugar can I use sweetner and how much

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    1. I don't think sweetener would work for the frosting, but it sure would be great in the cake! If you're using a granulated sweetener like Splenda, the ratio is cup-for-cup. So, for this recipe, you'd use two cups of sweetener in the batter.

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    2. The ratio of Splenda for sugar is never one to one. Check on the Splends package it will tell you how to substitute it for regular sugar in recipes.

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  11. Instead of using the regular sugar can I use sweetner and how much

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  12. Years ago I made a cake like this called Ugly Duckling Cake. I found the recipe in a magazine advertisement for Baker's coconut. The recipe called for a yellow cake mix and instead of pineapple it called for fruit cocktail.The milk ,sugar and butter was boiled for only 1 minute. Sugar will crystallize when boiled 5 minutes. This recipe is wrong in stating that. Thats why it harden the next day.

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    Replies
    1. Your version of thus cake is the one I've Bryn looking for, thank you for sharing :)

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    2. Your version of thus cake is the one I've been looking for. Thank you for sharing :)

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  13. Years ago I made a cake like this called Ugly Duckling Cake. I found the recipe in a magazine advertisement for Baker's coconut. The recipe called for a yellow cake mix and instead of pineapple it called for fruit cocktail.The milk ,sugar and butter was boiled for only 1 minute. Sugar will crystallize when boiled 5 minutes. This recipe is wrong in stating that. Thats why it harden the next day.

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  14. I have made this same recipe for years only I use a cream cheese frosting with either almond (my favorite) or vanilla extract. Still pour over cake while it is warm so it will soak in. It is even better if your refrigerate before serving.

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  15. My mother used to make this but used fruit cocktail instead of pineapple. Awesome cake either way, I've used both.

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  16. My mother used to make this but used fruit cocktail instead of pineapple. Awesome cake either way, I've used both.

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  17. Usually I forego icing the cake. Can I add the cocolut to the recipe without affecting the outcome?

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  18. Usually I forego icing a cake. Can I add the coconut to the batter without affecting the outcome?

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  19. It was yummy & super moist. If I were to do anything different next time, it would possibly be to toast the pecans, but then that would be doing something. I also agree with Tony; so much better than using a box cake!

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  20. This looks great! I always cut down on sugar in all my recipes and this one for sure, but I am going to try it. Thank you!

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  21. Thank you for the recipe
    Just made it and it's delicious (halved the sugar)

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  22. Thank you for the recipe
    Just made it and it's delicious (halved the sugar)

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  23. Do you use any particular kind of nuts?

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