This super moist pineapple cake recipe is the best I’ve ever had (and I don’t use the word ‘best’ lightly)! It’s made up of soft pineapple cake layers, filled with a pineapple cake filling, and topped with a stabilized pineapple whipped cream frosting. It may sound fancy and complex, but trust me when I say that each element of this cake is SO EASY to make!
What makes this the best pineapple cake recipe?
When I first thought of making a pineapple cake, I wanted to do something other than a pineapple upside down cake. Something different, but it still had to have pineapple as the star of the show.
Now I know claiming something as ‘the best’ is quite bold, but hear me out. This recipe has three elements, and each element is packed with pineapple, making it the perfect pineapple dessert!
Pineapple Cake Layers
First is the super soft pineapple cake layers. They’re made up of flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, canned crushed pineapple, vanilla extract or essence, and fresh lemon juice.
The combination of flour and cornstarch (as a cake flour substitute), results in a super soft and lush crumb, and the canned crushed pineapple provides heaps of additional flavour and texture, with little bits of pineapple throughout the cake layers.
Pineapple Cake Filling
The pineapple filling for this cake is in my opinion, the star of this cake. It is packed with pineapple flavor and slightly tart too, which cuts through the sweetness of the cake (although this cake is not overly sweet at all – some may find it not sweet enough!).
The filling is made up of canned crushed pineapple, sugar, cornstarch, milk, lemon juice, butter and optional yellow gel food colouring. I adapted the recipe from my eggless lemon curd, which I absolutely love as sometimes I find the egg yolks in curd fillings a bit strong!
Pineapple Whipped Cream Frosting
When thinking about a frosting for this cake, I wanted it to have pineapple in it, but also wanted it to be light. My stabilized whipped cream frosting came to mind as well as my cream cheese frosting recipe, though I wasn’t sure whether the pineapple would go as well with the latter.
I decided to experiment with the whipped cream, and folded canned crushed pineapple (with the juice removed) into the whipped cream, and boy was it good!! I was sold on the first try so decided to stick with it.
Do I have to use Canned Crushed Pineapple?
I do highly recommend using canned crushed pineapple for this recipe as it provides great texture throughout the cake. You also want to stick to a crushed pineapple that’s in pineapple juice, rather than syrup. However, if you can only find crushed pineapple in syrup, it’ll still be fine – your cake may just be a little sweeter 🙂
You could use pineapple slices, pineapple rings or fresh pineapple, but then you would need to cut them into smaller pieces (or blend them into chunks without making the pineapple too smooth otherwise this may affect the texture of the cake in particular).
How to Make Pineapple Cake
All of the elements of this pineapple cake come together really easily!
Pineapple Cake
First is the cake batter. Begin by Preheating your oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (if your oven doesn’t have a fan option, then you will need to increase the baking temperature to 175°C/350°F) and grease two 8 inch cake pans (I use my homemade cake release). Also line the bottom as this cake is prone to sticking to the bottom of the cake tin.
Sift together the all purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
In a large bowl combine the white sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, vanilla and lemon juice. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and no lumps remain.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and using a spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
Evenly distribute the batter into the two cake tins. Drop the cake tins lighly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 30-33 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Once baked, allow them to cool in the cake tins for about 20 minutes, and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool before frosting.
Pineapple Cake Filling
While the cake is baking, make the pineapple cake filling. In a saucepan combine crushed pineapple, white sugar, cornstarch, milk and lemon juice. Mix everything well and then place it over a medium heat, continously mixing until it becomes thick in consistency. It may look like the filling is curdling as it’s heating up, but don’t worry it will come together once the cornstarch is activated.
Once thick, take it off the heat immediately and add in the butter and gel colour (if you’re using it). Stir until the butter is completely melted and incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.
Pineapple Whipped Cream Frosting
Prepare the whipped cream once everything is cool and the cake is ready to assemble. Before beginning, your mascarpone and whipped cream should be cold.
In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone, icing sugar (also known as powdered sugar or confectioners’ sugar) and vanilla. Mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix until well combined. If using a stand mixer use the whisk attachment.
Add in the whipping cream and mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds (to allow everything to combine without the cream splattering), and then turn up the speed to a medium high and whip until you reach stiff peaks. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don’t want to overwhip the cream.
To finish, add in the crushed pineapple, and using a spatula, gently fold it in until just combined. The frosting is now ready to use.
Assembly
OPTIONAL: Begin by trimming off all the caramelised edges on the top, bottom and sides of the cake layers. Also level the tops if the cake layers have a slight dome.
Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
Place some of the frosting into a piping bag with a 1A round tip, and pipe a border/dam around the edges of the cake layer to hold in the pineapple filling. Fill the middle with half of the pineapple filling.
Place the next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1A piping tip – see video for demonstration) and then fill the middle with the remaining pineapple filling. Enjoy!
How do you store pineapple cake?
This cake can be left out at room temperature for a few hours (if the weather isn’t too hot), but after that it will need to placed into an airtight container and refrigerated due to the whipped cream. The cake will last upto a week in the fridge.
The Best Pineapple Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Pineapple Cake
- 2¼ cups (270 g) flour - plain, all purpose flour
- ¼ cup (25 g) cornstarch - also known as cornflour in some countries
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1¼ cups (250 g) white granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs - room temperature. I use size 7 eggs
- ¾ cup (160 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 2½ cups (566 g) canned crushed pineapple - in pineapple juice (not syrup - see note 5). 20 oz can in the US.
- 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- 1½ tbsp (20 g) fresh lemon juice
Pineapple Cake Filling
- ¾ cup (170 g) canned crushed pineapple - in pineapple juice (not syrup - see note 5).
- ¼ cup (50 g) white granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (25 g) cornstarch
- ¾ cup (175 g) milk - full fat
- 1 tbsp (15 g) fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter - cold and cut into cubes.
- 1 drop yellow gel food colour - OPTIONAL (see note 4).
Pineapple Whipped Cream Frosting
- 1 cup (225 g) mascarpone - cold. See note 1 if you don't want to use mascarpone.
- ½ cup (55 g) icing sugar - also known as powdered sugar or confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- 1½ cups (335 g) whipping cream - cold, minimum fat percentage of 34%
- ½ cup (112 g) canned crushed pineapple - with the excess pineapple juice removed (see note 2).
Instructions
Pineapple Cake
- Preheat oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (see note 3 if you don't have a fan function) and grease two 8 inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release). Also line the bottom as this cake is prone to sticking to the bottom of the cake tin.
- Sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside for now.
- In a large bowl combine the white sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, vanilla and lemon juice. Using a whisk, mix until well combined and no lumps remain.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and using a spatula, gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Evenly distribute the batter into the two cake tins. Drop the cake tins lighly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 30-33 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Once baked, allow them to cool in the cake tins for about 20 minutes, and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool before frosting.
Pineapple Cake Filling
- While the cake is baking, make the pineapple filling. In a saucepan combine crushed pineapple, white sugar, cornstarch, milk and lemon juice. Mix everything well and then place it over a medium heat, continously mixing until it becomes thick in consistency. It may look like the filling is curdling as it's heating up, but don't worry it will come together once the cornstarch is activated.
- Once thick, take it off the heat immediately and add in the butter and gel colour (if you're using it). Stir until the butter is completely melted and incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.
Pineapple Whipped Cream Frosting
- Prepare the whipped cream once everything is cool and the cake is ready to assemble. Before beginning, your mascarpone and whipped cream should be cold.
- In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone, icing sugar and vanilla. Mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix until well combined. If using a stand mixer use the whisk attachment.
- Add in the whipping cream and mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds (to allow everything to combine without the cream splattering), and then turn up the speed to a medium high and whip until you reach stiff peaks. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don't want to overwhip the cream.
- To finish, add in the crushed pineapple, and using a spatula, gently fold it in until just combined. The frosting is now ready to use.
Assembly
- OPTIONAL: Begin by trimming off all the caramelised edges on the top, bottom and sides of the cake layers. Also level the tops if the cake layers have a slight dome.
- Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
- Place some of the frosting into a piping bag with a 1A round tip, and pipe a border/dam around the edges of the cake layer to hold in the pineapple filling. Fill the middle with half of the pineapple filling.
- Place the next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
- For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1A piping tip - see video for demonstration) and then fill the middle with the remaining pineapple filling. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
108 Comments
Hi Mk,
I love your recipes. Can I replace eggs with yogurt to make it eggless and keep the remaining ingredients as is. Does other ingredients need to be modified by weight if I replace eggs with yogurt.
Hi Shilpa 🙂 so happy to hear you’re enjoying the recipes 😀
Unfortunately I haven’t tried that substitute myself so I’m not too sure sorry! The eggs play an important role in the structure of the cake so I am not sure if yoghurt would be enough to hold everything together. If you do decide to try it out would love to hear how it goes 🙂
Sorry I couldn’t be of more help!
Can I use rye flour instead of AP flour and canned pears be substituted for pineapple? I don’t have those ingredients.
Hi Tammy! 🙂 I haven’t tried those substitutes myself so I’m really not too sure sorry. It may be better to search for a recipe that specifically uses those ingredients for best results 🙂
Hi!
I was wondering if it is possible to use fresh pineapple (measuring by grams) rather than the canned.
Thank you!
Hi Leah! 🙂 I haven’t tried that myself, but I think it really depends on how sweet the pineapple is. Canned pineapple is usually quite sweet, so if the fresh pineapple is sweet/ripe enough it may be okay (you just want to make sure the cake doesn’t end up bitter). The only other thing to keep in mind is canned pineapple also has extra juice/liquid in it, which contributes to how moist the cake is so you may need to add in a bit of extra liquid to the batter. Sorry I couldn’t give you more of a definitive answer but would love to hear how it goes if you decide to try it out 🙂
Love love your recipes!
How can I convert this into a 9×13 sheet cake? and is the filling necessary or will it still taste good with just the cake and whipped frosting?
thanks!!
Thank you so much Pragya! 😀
Using the same amount of batter (1x this recipe) will work well for a 9×13 inch pan 🙂 and I do think the filling is the star of the show (in my opinion) so would recommend making it 😀 although it will still be great without it 🙂
Can i make these in cupcake size and what would i need to change? Making this today…
Hi Iris! 🙂 Yes that should be fine, you would just need to reduce the cook time to about the 18 min mark 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
🤤👏👏👏Absolutely delicious! And rather easy! Thank you!
I could not find mascarpone at my local store, so I mixed 3/4 cream cheese to 1/4 sour cream. Seemed to work.
Thanks so much for the feedback Mimi! So so happy to hear you loved the recipe and that the cream cheese and sour cream substitutes worked 😀
Can I use cake flour? If so, how many cups? Thank you.
Hi Jackie! 🙂 Yes you could use cake flour – simply substitute both the all purpose flour and cornstarch in the recipe with cake flour (295g total or 2 1/2 cups). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Can I make cakes ahead of time, and freeze ? ( and is 1 week in freezer ok if so ) then assemble on day of event
Hi Sally! I haven’t tried freezing these cakes myself, but if wrapped well with cling wrap and placed into an airtight container I believe it should be fine 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
This has become one of the four go to cakes for my family. Just wondering how can I make the filling with tequila?
Awesome! So happy to hear your family is loving the recipe Futami 😀
As I don’t consume alcohol myself, I don’t have any experience baking with it so I am really not too sure sorry! The only advice I can give is that it may thin out the filling a little so you may need to add more cornstarch to make sure the filling isn’t too liquidy 🙂
Hope that helps and thanks so much for the feedback!
Hi Maryam, wanna try this cake. But i need a help from your side.
1) I have 30% dairy whipping cream , how to use it correctly. ( I don’t have mascarpone)
2) what’s the difference between granulated sugar and icing sugar. Can i use icing sugar instead of granulated sugar
3) can i use salted butter instead of unsalted butter
4) I have canned pineapple (syrup) . How to use it so that it doesn’t become too sweet.
Hi Sarah! 🙂
1) In terms of the whipping cream, if it can be whipped to a stable/stiff consistency it should be fine, but you will need to amend the frosting recipe as the frosting may be too sweet if you don’t add any mascarpone. I would recommend just making a regular whipped cream with a bit of vanilla and powdered sugar added in 🙂
2) The difference is that icing sugar is basically sugar in powdered form and has a little cornstarch added in. It dissolves very quickly and is ideal for frostings. In terms of using it instead of the granulated sugar for the cake, I haven’t tried this myself and probably wouldn’t advise it as it is likely to change the texture of the cake.
3) You can use salted butter – just omit the additional salt in the recipe.
4) If using canned pineapple with syrup, you can leave it as is (the cake will just be a bit sweeter) or you could reduce the sugar in the cake batter slightly. I am not sure exactly by how much, but maybe removing around 2-3 tbsp will work well.
Hope that helps Sarah and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂