Mandarin Orange Cake

Cooking my Way through Neighborhood Cookbooks

While flipping through the neighborhood cookbook this recipe for a Mandarin Orange Cake caught my eye. I thought it would be a light and refreshing summer treat. And it was.
 
Start with a box of yellow cake mix. Add in some unsweetened applesauce, the juice from a can of mandarin oranges, egg whites, and a whole egg.

Mix until well blended. Then fold in a can of mandarin oranges. The recipe didn’t specify if the oranges should be whole or cut into pieces. I folded whole oranges into the cake mix, but when I make this cake again (and I will) I’ll cut the mandarin oranges into chunks and maybe put in two cans.

Pour the cake batter into a 9 X 13 inch pan and bake at 350° F for 30-40 minutes. I went for the low end of time – 30 minutes and the edges browned a little too much. The center was still moist. In the future I’ll start with 25 minutes and check for doneness.

Now comes the most delicious part of this cake. The topping. Mix together a small box of coconut pudding, a can of crushed pineapple, and some whipped topping.

I was traveling with this cake, so instead of “frosting” it I packed the topping to take with. By the way the topping filled way more than one whipped topping container.

When I make recipes from the neighborhood cookbook I look for ways to bump up the nutrition. But with desserts I think you should just enjoy them. And… this recipe had “weight watcher” points printed next to the recipe; I think someone substituted the applesauce and egg whites for oil.

​Mandarin Orange Cake (my suggested updates in parenthesis)

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18 oz unprepared yellow cake mix
¾ C unsweetened applesauce
3 egg whites
1 egg
11 oz can mandarin oranges (I would use two cans and cut oranges in half or thirds)
 
1 small instant coconut or vanilla pudding mix
20 oz can crushed pineapple and the juice
8 oz lite whipped topping
 
Thoroughly mix the cake mix with the applesauce, the juice of the mandarin oranges (one can only), the egg whites, and the egg. Fold in the mandarin oranges. Pour into a 9 X 13 inch cake pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 ° F. (I suggest started at 25 min and checking for doneness). Cool completely. Mix the pudding mix with the crushed pineapple and fold in the whipped topping. Spread on the cooled cake. (I like putting a dollop on each piece so you can store the cake longer). Top with more mandarin oranges if desired. Refrigerate if topping is spread all over or just refrigerate topping.