Simplify Your Sweet Tooth: Easy 5-Ingredient Pineapple Cake Recipe (2024)

This 5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake is a simple dessert that only uses a few pantry staples that you probably have on hand. You can mix up the recipe in just 5 minutes!

5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake Recipe

I will confess: I used to make a TON of desserts. You can find pretty much all the recipes here on the blog. I definitely had a sweet tooth, and it showed.

But believe it or not, I quit sugar over 10 years ago and haven’t looked back. Now, we only make desserts on occasion, usually mostly for the kids to have a treat.

I was rarely making any desserts recently, but we made a deal with the kids…if they did a good job on school during the week, I would make them a dessert to enjoy over the weekend.

So, although we haven’t been big on desserts lately, I do have a few new recipes that I want to share with you from things that we ARE making!

This recipe is adapted from a recipe in Mennonite Country Style Recipes Cookbook. One of my favorite cookbooks!

Why We Love This Recipe

This recipe is very easy to make and takes advantage of a few convenience foods. You can absolutely make the cake mix from scratch and use your own home-canned pineapple to avoid any pre-boxed/canned products if you want to!

This is a fun dessert to make when you want a dessert but want to spend very little hands-on time making it.

Ingredients in Pineapple Cake

• Brown Sugar.
• Water. This one doesn’t count toward our 5 ingredient total because although it’s an addition, it’s not another product you have to buy. Maybe that doesn’t count…it’s still an easy recipe!
• Crushed Pineapple. I like to stock up on this at Aldi when I’m in a town that has one. They have a canned version that doesn’t have additives like sugar.
• Cake Mix. You can use homemade or you can use one from the store. To make this recipe I’m using the boxed gluten freecake mix from Aldi. I have a recipe for Homemade Cake Mix in my book.
• Butter. You can replace this with a buttery spread if you need to for dairy-free.
• Shredded Coconut. This is our topping! You could probably go without it, but it adds a nice extra flavor if you like coconut.

FAQs About Pineapple Cake

Can I use fresh pineapple instead of canned?

Yes, you can! Just cut up your fresh pineapple and then run the pieces through the food processor or blender to have “crushed pineapple” for this recipe.

What makes a cake heavy or light?

Adding too much liquid or not baking a cake long enough will make it dense. Also adding in too many add-ins can also make it dense if you do not cook it long enough.

Can you make chunk pineapple into crushed?

Yes, with just a few spins around your food processor or blender, you can turn chunk pineapple into crushed pineapple if that’s all you have on hand.

What to Serve With Pineapple Cake

You can serve this recipe with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or with whipped cream. It’s good warm or cold and with or without any extra toppings!

Instructions for Making Pineapple Cake

In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and water. My stainless steel kettle is from Libby’s, and I love it! They have some similar ones on Amazon here.

Pour the mixture into the bottom of a greased 9×13 baking dish.

Add the can of (undrained) pineapple over the top of the brown sugar.

See Also

DIY Face Toner Pads with Essential Oils - Customizable Recipe!Easy Hoagie Roll Recipe (9 Ingredients!) - Oh Sweet BasilTried and Tested Favorite Family Recipes - Andrea's NotebookThe Best Zucchini Recipe Ever - Zucchini Crust Pizza

Sprinkle the coconut flakes over the top of the entire cake.

Sprinkle the cake mix over the wet ingredients evenly. Do not mix the ingredients.

Slice the butter and place the pieces over the mixture.

Bake the cake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes in the oven or until the cake looks firm and done or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly and serve!

How to Take The Pineapple Cake to the Next Level

If you have the time, you can make these minor tweaks to the original cake recipe to make it taste even better!

• Use toasted coconut instead of regular coconut.
• Add some chopped pecans or other chopped nuts when you add the coconut for a more classic spin on this recipe.
• Add a few cherries to the top of the cake with the crushed pineapple to make a cherry pineapple dump cake.

Need to print this 5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake Recipe for your Recipe Binder? Grab it below!

Gluten Free 5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake

Use a gluten free cake mix (like I did) in place of a regular cake mix to make this recipe gluten free.

Dairy Free 5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake

Use a buttery spread (I used Earth Balance) in place of butter to make this cake dairy-free.

This is a delicious cake that takes on all of the pineapple juices to give it a pineapple flavor, while the coconut adds a little extra flavor to make you feel like you found a tropical vacation dessert. It’s similar to many other dump cake recipes, with a few extra additions to take it to the next level.

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge or on the countertop.

More Cake Recipes

• Simple Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
• Recipe for Rhubarb Cake with Buttermilk
• Easy Angel Food Cake without Special Cake Pans
• Simple and Easy Carrot Cake Recipe
• Lemonade Poke Cake Recipe
• Simple Banana Cake Recipe
• Homemade Strawberry Cake Recipe

Made this recipe and loved it? Be sure to leave a star rating on the recipe card above, and don’t forget to share with your friends on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter (X), and through Email using the sharing buttons below.

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about andliving the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from theContact Page.

This recipe for 5 Ingredient Pineapple Cake was originally posted on Little House Living in January 2023. It has been updated as of March 2024.