Coconut-Pineapple Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

This recipe was submitted to a Southern Living recipe contest and won Dessert of the Year. It graces the cover of the 20th anniversary edition of the SL Annual Recipes Cookbook. It's a beautiful and delicious cake. We made it for Easter last year, and the family prounounced that it will be our traditional Easter cake from that moment on. Southern U.S. region, of course.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Yields: 1 3layer 9inch cake

Ingredients

• 1 (15 1/4ounce) can  crushed pineapple in juice, undrained, divided use
• 1 1⁄2 cups butter, softened
• 3  cups sugar
• 5  eggs
• 1⁄2 cup  carbonated lemon-lime beverage
• 3  cups cake flour, sifted
• 1  teaspoon  lemon extract
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6  ounces  shredded coconut (for coating sides of cake)

• Pineapple Filling

• 2  cups sugar
• 1⁄4 cup cornstarch
• 1  cup water

• Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1⁄2 cup butter, softened
• 3  ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1  lb powdered sugar, sifted
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Grease three 9" round cake pans, and line bottoms with parchment paper.
2. Drain pineapple, reserving 3/4 cup juice.
3. Remove 1/4 cup of the juice for the Cream Cheese Frosting.
4. Reserve the pineapple for the Pineapple Filling.
5. Beat butter at medium speed with a mixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well.
6. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition.
7. Combine 1/2 cup reserved pineapple juice and 7-Up.
8. Add flour to butter mixture alternately with juice mixture, beginning and ending with flour.
9. Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.
10. Stir in extracts.
11. Pour 1/3 of batter into each of the prepared cake pans.
12. Bake at 350 for 25- 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
13. Remove from pans immediately; cool on wire racks.
14. Meanwhile make Pineapple Filling.
15. Stir together sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan.
16. Stir in pineapple and water.
17. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes or until very thick.
18. Cool.
19. When cake is cool, make Cream Cheese Frosting.
20. Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended.
21. Gradually add powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough pineapple juice to make frosting a good spreading consistency, mixing well.
22. When cake has cooled, stack cake layers, spreading 3/4 cup Pineapple Filling between each layer, and spreading remaining filling on top of cake, spreading to within 1/2" of edges.
23. Spread Cream Cheese Frosting on sides of cake, and pipe a border around the top 1/2" edge, or just spread some of the frosting around the edge.
24. Sprinkle coconut on sides and border, coating the Cream Cheese Frosting.