Hummingbird Cake

  I made this cake last weekend (for Memorial Day I told myself). I got the recipe out of a book called "Derrick Delights".
   It didn't say what size pans to use. I used 8'' pans and took about 35 to 40 minutes instead of the 25 to 30 it said it would, so I'm guessing I was supposed to use 9''. Oh well, it's not like I have three 9" cake pans anyway. It also didn't have a recipe for the cream cheese frosting, so I used the one from my favorite Italian Cream Cake recipe. There is a printer friendly version at the end. I hope it works. It's my first time trying to make one.

                                                       Hummingbird Cake

3 cups flour                            1 cup salad oil
2 cups sugar                           1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. salt                               1 8 1/4oz. can crushed pineapple. (I used heavy syrup. 8oz. works fine)   
1 tsp. cinnamon                     1 cup chopped pecans
1 tsp. baking soda                  2 diced bananas
3 eggs


  Combine dry ingredients . Mix with eggs and oil until well moistened. Do not overbeat. Stir in vanilla, pineapple (I put the juice in too), pecans, and bananas (feel free to mush some of the bananas into the batter). Pour batter into 3 well greased and floured 9" cake pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 350. Cool in cake pans 10 minutes. Remove and cool on rack thoroughly. (Be sure to do this or your cake may be too moist.)


I never liked cream cheese frosting until I started using 33% less fat Neufchatel cheese. It was too rich. I'd often get sick eating it. I was a little leery of trying it low fat cream cheese at first. Low fat, low taste, right? But this stuff is fantastic! I like to buy several packs when it goes on sale and leave them in the freezer until I want to use it. If you're going to make it into frosting you have to be sure it is completely thawed or else it won't fluff properly, but other than that it work out great. 

                  

                                                     Cream Cheese frosting

1 8oz package cream cheese              1 cup chopped pecans
1 stick butter                                       1 cup flaked coconut 
1 box powder sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Beat cream cheese and butter. Add powder sugar (a little at a time until desired taste and consistency are reached). Mix in vanilla. Stir in pecans and coconut. Spread on cooled cake.

Printer friendly version here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1H92O7DRSAtbW2g5FVsGpCW6T-Z0b-QJjehTTMiBBgmc/edit?usp=sharing

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