I’ll open this post with two confessions: Firstly, that this is my favourite cake ever (and I’m not a big cake person), second, that I cannot take full credit for this recipe. The original recipe for this cake was passed on to me by my mother-in-law who received it from a co-workers of hers ages ago, who I’m sure in turn received it from someone else and so on and so forth. It’s one of those recipes- an heirloom.
Sure, it’s changed a bit since my MIL gave it to me, and she herself changed it a bit when she started making it, but the inspiration is there. The essence of the cake is the same.
I talk about my MIL a lot on the blog, since she has inspired a lot of my recipes. We pretty similar- we both like to cook and garden, value family, and can be stubborn as mules. I find her wonderfully easy to talk to, and I know she’ll always be there if I need her.
In other ways, we can be pretty different- she is deeply rooted in tradition, whereas I can be… offbeat. Still, I have to give her credit, whenever I veer too far off of The Way Things Are Traditionally Done, she’ll express her dissatisfaction, maybe roll her eyes, and then… let me continue on with whatever wild idea I have! Considering, as I mentioned, we’re both really stubborn (must be a Capricorn thing), this is amazing to me, and I don’t ever fail to appreciate it.
On that note, I can see how the original recipe for this must have been pretty retro. Crushed pineapple, coconut, whipped cream… it’s like something out of a Food & Wine magazine from 1962. It’s one step away from a jello mould or an ambrosia salad.
I believe the original recipe, among other things, called for a fair bit of coconut to be spread over the icing. It makes sense then, that the original was dubbed a ‘Sun and Snow Cake.’ Living in BC, I don’t experience a lot of sun-and-snow (just sun and rain, thanks), and when I tried it with the coconut it was just… too much. While I do love coconut, the texture fought with the other elements too much for my tastes- but keep it in mind as an option if you loooove coconut.
Sweet and tart pineapple, orange and grapefruit come together to make something that tastes freshly squeezed and punchy with flavour. The cake itself is incredibly moist, but also light as a feather thanks to some whipped egg whites. In lieu of traditional icing, which can be heavy, this cake is iced with whipped cream only- a fluffy cloud floating along an otherwise bright blue sky.
So, a retro recipe- updated. Add a variety of citrus, cut down the sugar, nix the coconut. Now we’re talking!
In that vein, I have added three options below for putting this dessert together:
- One big cake: wide and low, great for a crowd for a birthday party.
- 3-4 small but tall cakes (depending on how many layers you add to each): great for a small crowd or a date night.
- Lazy trifle: my personal favourite, since it doesn’t involve any cake artistry or finicky icing whatsoever. Excellent for a crowd, quick and easy.
| Spring Sunshine Cake | Print |
- Cake:
- ½ cup butter
- 1¼ cups sugar
- 4 egg whites (reserve yolks for filling)
- 1 Tbsp orange peel, grated
- 1 Tbsp grapefruit peel, grated
- 2⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup cold water
- ¼ cup orange juice
- .
- Filling:
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp orange peel, grated
- 1 Tbsp grapefruit peel, grated
- ½ cup orange juice
- ½ cup grapefruit juice
- ½ cup water
- 4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 cup crushed pineapple
- .
- Whipped cream:
- 1 cup cold, heavy whipping cream
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Batter: In a large bowl cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg whites one at a time, beating well after each. Add orange peel, flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, water and orange juice. Mix until just combined.
- Filling: In medium saucepan, combine sugar with cornstarch, salt and orange peel. Gradually blend in orange juice, pineapple, water, and yolks. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Add butter, mix to combine and cool completely.
- Icing: Pour heavy whipping cream, sugar and vanilla into a cold bowl and whisk on high speed until medium to stiff peaks form, about 1 minute. Gently spread whipped cream over the sides of the stacked cake, as a form of fluffy, cloud-like 'icing.' Chill cake until serving.
- Cake Option 1: Big Cake. Grease two 8 inch cake pans and then dust with flour to coat. (if you only have one cake pan, don't worry, just do the cakes one at a time). Pour the batter into the cake pans, dividing them as evenly as possible between both. Bake for 30 to 40 mins, until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool the cakes for 10 mins and then remove them from the pans, resting them on racks to cool completely. Using a sharp knife, cut each cake in half, lengthwise so you are left with 4, relatively uniform circles of cake. Spread rough ¾ cup of filling on to the top of one circle of cake. Place the second circle overtop and repeat. Repeat process until the 4th circle of cake is resting on the top, spreading the remaining filling on the exposed top of the cake. Spread whipped cream 'icing; around the outer edges of the cake and chill until ready to serve.
- Option 2: Small, tall cakes. Grease two 8 inch cake pans and then dust with flour to coat. (if you only have one cake pan, don't worry, just do the cakes one at a time). Pour the batter into the cake pans, dividing them as evenly as possible between both. Bake for 30 to 40 mins, until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool the cakes for 10 mins and then remove them from the pans, resting them on racks to cool completely. Using a round biscuit cutter (or thoroughly cleaned old tuna or bean can), cut 3-4 round circles out of each large cake. Spread 2-3 Tbsp of filling on top of one circle, top with another, and repeat until the cake is 2-3 layers thick, with filling in between all the layers and on the very top. Spread whipped cream 'icing; around the outer edges of the cake and chill until ready to serve.
- Option 3: Lovely, lazy trifle. Grease two 9 inch square cake pans and then dust with flour to coat. (if you only have one cake pan, don't worry, just do the cakes one at a time). Pour the batter into the cake pans, dividing them as evenly as possible between the two. Bake for 30 to 40 mins, until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool the cakes for 10 mins and then remove them from the pans, resting them on racks to cool completely. Cut each cake into 1 inch cubes. In one large, deep glass dish (or multiple small glasses/jars, as shown in the picture), spread one layer of cake cubes followed by one layer or filling, followed by one layer of whipped cream icing. Repeat process until you reach the top, finishing the sequence with a generous layer of whipped cream and an additional sprinkle of orange zest.
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