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Pineapple sheet cake brings together simple ingredients with a dump-and-stir prep to create this tropical treat! It’s a winner among cake recipes! I love sheet cake’s for their cake to topping or frosting ratio. Of all my fruit cake recipes, this is one I go to again and again!
Pineapple isn’t necessarily the most common ingredient in cake, but it’s wonderful when it’s used! For other cakes starring this tropical superstar, check out pineapple pound cake, pineapple sunshine cake, and pineapple upside down cake!
Let’s bake this cake!
What I Love About This Recipe
This cake is a moist, pineapple-studded cake drenched in a sweet, creamy coconut icing, with crispy toasted pecans on top. You’ll be dreaming of beach vacations and tropical cocktails after just one bite!
- The tropical flavors
- Moist tender cake
- Tangy, sweet pineapple, chewy coconut in a creamy icing
- A sweet, textural masterpiece that I actually love to make it all year long
Pineapple Sheet Cake Ingredients
Cake:
- Sugar: Granulated sugar.
- Flour: All-purpose flour. I generally use Gold Medal.
- Oil: Any neutral flavored oil will work.
- Eggs: I use large eggs. They’re best used at room temperature.
- Pineapple: Don’t drain the pineapple, you’re going to use the juice.
- Baking Soda: This gives the cake batter it’s little bit of rise.
- Vanilla Extract: I use pure vanilla extract, not the imitation.
- Salt: Table salt.
Icing:
- Sugar: Granulated sugar.
- Butter: I use unsalted butter.
- Evaporated Milk: Be sure to use evaporated, not sweetened condensed milk.
- Salt: Again, table salt.
- Coconut: Sweetened coconut is better than unsweetened coconut flakes. You’ll lose the chewy texture with the unsweetened variety. If you’re concerned about the sweetness level, adjust the sugar in the icing to your tastes.
- Pecans
How To Make Pineapple Sheet Cake Recipe
- Begin by combining all the cake ingredients in a bowl and mixing until smooth. Spread the batter into a prepared pan and bake.
- While the cake is cooking, assemble the icing ingredients except for the coconut in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the coconut.
- Pour the icing over the hot cake and sprinkle toasted pecans over the top. Allow the cake to cool and the icing to set before serving.
***See the full instructions below.
Recipe Notes
This pineapple sheet cake with coconut pecan frosting is super simple, but here are a few extra tips!
- Toasting the nuts- Be sure you take a minute to toast the pecans. It brings out their flavor and adds a bit of crunch. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and put them in a 350-degree oven for 5-10 minutes, or they smell yummy.
- Pan size- For this recipe, however, I use a 15 x 10 x 1-inch baking sheet. If you don’t happen to have this size baking pan, do what my Mom does and bake it in a 9” x 13” pan. Cook until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Not all of us have sheet cake pans, first of all, but smaller pans mean thicker cake slices, and I think we can all agree that’s a good thing! It’ll just take a little longer to bake (~ 10 minutes)
- Icing – The real magic that makes this cake such a rich treat is pouring the icing over the cake while they’re both still nice and warm. The cake will still be steaming and porous which makes for a perfect sponge to soak up the icing.
- Just make sure you wait to add the toasted pecans on top, rather than stirring them in with the coconut, so they’ll keep more of their crispy texture
Serving Recommendation
You gotta enjoy this cake with creamsicle drink or planter’s punch!
How to Store and Make Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? Food handling guidelines suggest that cake holds for 7 days in the fridge, but I think the moisture in this cake would limit it to 3-4 days for optimal texture!
- Can You Freeze This? This pineapple sheet cake freezes really well. Just be sure to follow good freezing techniques and wrap it tightly.
- Defrost overnight in the fridge before serving! I would also hold off on the nuts until serving. They’ll be crunchier and have a fresh roasted taste if they skip the trip through the deep freeze.
- Make Ahead Tips: This recipe holds well for a couple of days, so you can make it ahead of time.
More Fruit Cake Recipes
- Pina Colada Sheet Cake
- Caramel Apple Sheet Cake
- Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- Coconut Sheet Cake
- Strawberry Jello Cake
- Banana Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
- Strawberry Tres Leches Cake
Tried This Recipe?
If you made this Pineapple Sheet Cake, I’d love to hear how it turned out!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please take a moment to leave a star rating and a quick comment — I love hearing from you!
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Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today — happy cooking, friends! ❤️ Kathleen
Pineapple Sheet Cake
Enjoy the flavor of the islands with this pineapple sheet cake! Transform simple pantry ingredients into a decadent tropical treat! Assembles in minutes!
Servings: 12
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple undrained
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Icing:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter cubed
- 2/3 cup canned evaporated milk
- pinch salt
- 3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup toasted pecans chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Spray a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix all cake ingredients until smooth. Pour into prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 24 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, make the icing. In a saucepan combine the sugar (1 cup), butter (1/2 cup), salt (pinch), and evaporated milk (2/3 cup). Bring mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Stir in the coconut (3/4 cup).
- Pour the icing over the hot cake. Sprinkle the top with pecans (1/2 cup). Allow icing to set and cool before cutting.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Toasting the nuts- Be sure you take a minute to toast the pecans. It brings out their flavor and adds a bit of crunch. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and put them in a 350-degree oven for 5-10 minutes, or they smell yummy.
- Pan size- For this recipe, however, I use a 15 x 10 x 1-inch baking sheet. If you don’t happen to have this size baking pan, do what my Mom does and bake it in a 9” x 13” pan. Cook until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Not all of us have sheet cake pans, first of all, but smaller pans mean thicker cake slices, and I think we can all agree that’s a good thing! It’ll just take a little longer to bake (~ 10 minutes)
- Icing – The real magic that makes this cake such a rich treat is pouring the icing over the cake while they’re both still nice and warm. The cake will still be steaming and porous which makes for a perfect sponge to soak up the icing.
- Just make sure you wait to add the toasted pecans on top, rather than stirring them in with the coconut, so they’ll keep more of their crispy texture
Nutrition
Serving: 1/12 of the recipe | Calories: 530kcal | Carbohydrates: 77g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 52mg | Sodium: 252mg | Potassium: 111mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 59g | Vitamin A: 310IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1mg
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Source: Spicy Southern Kitchen
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it for our next family gathering. The combination of flavors sounds delicious, and I love how easy it seems to make. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you! We hope you’ll like this as much as we do. Let us know how it turns out 🙂
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to try it out for our family gathering. The addition of pineapple must make it so moist and flavorful. Thanks for sharing such a delightful recipe!
Hey T. I hope you love it! We sure do! I’d love to hear back from you when you make it!
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to try it out for my next family gathering. Love how you incorporated the whipped cream frosting—sounds so light and refreshing! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you! Enjoy and let us know how it turns out 🙂
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks absolutely delightful! I can’t wait to try this recipe for my next family gathering. The combination of pineapple and cake is always a winner in my book. Thank you for sharing such a delicious treat! 🍍🍰
Thanks! I hope you’ll like this as much as we do. Let us know how it turns out 🙂
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks absolutely delicious! I love how moist and flavorful it seems. Can’t wait to try it out at our next gathering. Thanks for sharing! 🍍💖
Thanks! I hope you’ll like this as much as we do. Let us know how it turns out 🙂
This Pineapple Sheet Cake looks absolutely delicious! I love how moist it appears, and the frosting sounds divine. Can’t wait to try this recipe for my next family gathering! Thanks for sharing!
Hi! We’re glad you wanna try this recipe. Enjoy and let us know how it turns out 🙂
I cut all sugars in half and it is still plenty sweet. Remember you have the crushed pineapple in juice and sugar in the coconut in the icing plus the sugar you add to both the cake and icing. My cousin gave me the exact recipe more than 40 years ago and she called it Texas Sheet cake. (She was from Texas). I cut the sugar in half myself.
Could this cake be made with a cake mix? Could I substitute sweetened condensed milk for evaporated milk in the icing?
Hi, Willa. I haven’t tried making this with cake mix and sweet condensed for evaporated milk.
I’d recommend these cakes that use cake mix:
1. Pineapple Sunshine Cake
2. Pig Pickin Cake
For more cake mix recipes, check it out here.
OOPS !
I made a mistake in my comment. I meant to say…… drizzle chocolate on top of the frosting.
Sounds like a great idea Millie!
I love this cake but my husband hates coconut. Whatdo you think about a coconut drizzle on top of the icing?
Sounds absolutely delicious. The only problem I am having about making this is, I HATE COCONUT. Is there something I can use instead of coconut, or can I just omit it completely, without ruining the topping?
Hi, Gayle. I haven’t tried the icing without coconut. Not sure, but I think it’ll still work without. Let us now how it turns out!
IT’S VERY TASTY. THE ONLY THING IS I USED FRESH PINEAPPLE PUT IN THE FOOD PROCESSOR. I THINK IT MADE MY CAKE TOO MOIST. THE CAKE BATTER SET BUT IT IS MORE LIKE A DUMP CAKE.
Hi Rachel. It still sounds delish, though!
I love everything about this sheet cake
Thank you, Primrose!❤️
Hi Patty! Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I generally use the crushed pineapple in juice, but if you check out my pictures, you can see my edges are caramalized too. That’s my hubbys favorite part. Baking this in a 9X13 inch baking dish should take 30-35 minutes. The fact that it sunk in the center makes me think it was underbaked. Seems really strange fir it to be underbaked with an overall bake time of 50 minutes! I wonder if somehow the heavy syrup from the pineapple changed the overall chemistry of the cake. Honestly, this one perplexes me! Sorry. This recipe is a tried and true favorite <3
My cousin gave me this exact recipe 45 years ago but they called it Texas Cake! I’m referring to the pineapple sheet cake. I have cut the white sugar in half because the canned pineapple is sweet and so is the sweetened coconut. I find it plenty sweet and everyone likes it.
Way to go, Jaroslaw! 😀 Glad to hear you liked it!