[Basically] Sugar-Free Pineapple Dream Cake

Sugar-Free Pineapple Dream Cake 

 (made in a toaster oven... with bread pans ^^!!) - i'm still trying to find my pictures!!! i know i put them somewhere!

Okay, so this was an experiment that didn't turn out so bad.
Back at home in Michigan, my mom makes this heavenly cake for many family gatherings. Her "Mother's Heavenly Healthy Pineapple Dream"... alright a bit of a mouthful so let's just keep it to sugar-free pineapple goodness? I suppose that's not much better. This is a labor intensive recipe if you're going whole-organic fruit, nothing canned - you've been forewarned! So, whatever You end up calling it, it's bound to delight the taste buds, satisfy the stomach, on go easy on the waistline.

(also, note, there are so many crazy variations of this cake that are potentially sugar free, that I'll put a suggestion list for you at the end!)

ingredients:

• 5-8 mandarins separated,peeled from their skin*, and crushed (or drain 1 medium sized can of excess high fructose corn syrup/water)
• 1/2 to a whole of a medium sized pineapple cored, crushed, and drained** (or drain 1 large sized can of excess high fructose corn syrup/water, and crush)
• 3 cups of whole wheat organic flour
• 1/2 cup of low-fat (or fat-free) greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp of salted butter (softened)
• 1 large free-range egg
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract (optional)
• 1/4 of shredded organic coconut (optional) 
• 1 container of fat-free/sugar-free cool whip - although since the rest of the cake seems alright to me, sometimes I use 1 package of vanilla pudding mixed in with the cool whip for added richness
• spray butter
• 2 cake pans of your choice - I prefer the expandable ones, but for this I had to use my bread tins in my toaster oven (the joys of baking in Korea without a real oven!)

the how to:

let's make the cake part first!  

1. Butter your pans... and heat up your oven to 325 degrees.
   
2. Sift together in a large bowl all the dry ingredients... flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Here in Seoul the cheaper version of vanilla comes as a powder, so I would usually sift this in as well.
3. Now make sure the butter is very soft and nearly melted and whip it into the greek yogurt until well mixed, then add the egg. If your vanilla extract is liquid whip it into the yogurt mixture.
4. Now, after you've skinned and crushed the mandarins, you can take a big spatula or wooden spoon and fold them into the yogurt mixture...
   [NOTE]: If you used fresh mandarins make sure not to drain the juice produced from the crushing, as this is the sugar your cake needs! However, if you used canned mandarins, do not use the high-fructose corn syrup. I can't be blamed for the constitution of the cake if you do ^^!
5. Now, you are ready to fold and easily mix your dry and wet ingredients. Don't over mix, but make sure the flour is well saturated.
    
6. Okay, you can split the batter between the amount of pans you chose for layering, or throw it all in the one expandable to slice up when it's cooled.
7. This cake should only take 15-18 minutes to become golden brown on the top, use tinfoil to protect from burning if it hasn't passed the tooth-pick test yet, and watch it till about 20-22 minutes till finished.
8. Rack it (them) up to cool, and start work on the pineapple filling.. mmmhmmm.

now make the filling! this is easy!

1. Take your fresh pineapple** (or your drained canned pineapple), and fold it in with the cool whip. Add a pre-made pudding mix (like vanilla or strawberry) for added richness to the filling.
2. You can also add 1 tsp of almond extract in the mixture for a nice paired taste with the pineapple.

finishing the cake 

1. After completely cooling, and if you want even sitting in the fridge for a few hours... Using as many layers as you'd like layer the filling and your cake. But make sure to leave enough filling to cover the top! Sprinkle with organic shredded coconut for a fluffy texture and paired taste!

*skinning mandarins - self developed technique:

1. separate the sections
2. use a sharp thin knife to slice off the interior edge
3. peel back the sides
4. scrape it off the remaining skin into the bowl

**preparing fresh pineapple - if you don't have a coring tool handy you can follow this YouTube video. You can save all but the skin and the top of pineapple and use it for something else, like juice and marinades!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBrBzzwxHgI


I hope you enjoy this cake as much as I did ) and still do. Here's a list of other more interesting flavor combinations I could think of (not all of which are possible in a sugar/fat - free environment... good luck):

CAKE FLAVOR > > >	PUDDING FLAVOR > > >	ADDITIONAL IDEAS
Chocolate	Vanilla	Chocolate Shavings
Strawberry	Banana Cream	Sliced Strawberries
Butter	Chocolate Fudge	White Chocolate Shavings
Lemon	Cheesecake	Sliced Kiwi
Coconut	Devil's Food	Toasted Coconut
Orange	Lemon	Diced Mandarin Oranges
German Chocolate	Coconut	Toasted Coconut
White	Pistachio	Finely Chopped Pistachios
Fudge Marble	White Chocolate	Chocolate Shavings
Banana	Chocolate	Sliced Bananas
Pineapple	French Vanilla	Crushed Pineapple

what's your favorite? maybe i'll try and make it ^^!