EASY PIG PICKIN’ CAKE
HOW-TO VIDEO INCLUDED BELOW
ALSO CALLED MANDARIN ORANGE CAKE
For her birthday, my Mom wanted a dessert she had not had since childhood, Pea Pickin’ Cake (or Pig Pickin’ Cake.) Her mother used to make it, but sadly she did not have her Momma’s recipe. So, my Mom and I were determined to get this just like she remembered. I think we nailed it!
CAKE MIX, MANDARIN ORANGES, COOL WHIP
yellow cake mix
butter
can of mandarin oranges
large eggs
vanilla extract
vanilla instant pudding mix
crushed pineapple
powdered sugar
whipped topping (COOL WHIP)
extra mandarin orange slices, for garnish
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE PIG PICKING CAKE:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.For the cake, combine cake mix, margarine, 1/2 cup juice from the mandarin oranges, eggs, and vanilla. Beat for four minutes on medium-high.
Add drained oranges and beat again until pieces are broken up and small. Pour batter into greased and floured 9 x 13 inch baking pan or 2-8 inch round pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes for 9X13 pan or 17-21 minutes for 8 inch pans. Basically you want the cake to be lightly golden brown and set. Remove from oven and cool completely.
Once cake is cool, blend juice from drained pineapples with the vanilla pudding mix. Add powdered sugar and mix, then mix in whipped topping. Stir in drained pineapple. Spread on cooled cake (or layers if making a round cake) and refrigerate several hours.
Enjoy!
Originally published: June 2011
Updated & Republished: April 2019
PIG PICKIN' CAKE
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup) softened
- 1 (14 oz) can mandarin oranges drained, 1/2 cup juice reserved
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the topping:
- 1 (4 oz) box vanilla instant pudding mix
- 1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple (juice reserved)
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 4 ounces Cool Whip (half a regular tub)
- extra mandarin orange slices, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- For the cake, combine cake mix, butter, 1/2 cup juice from the mandarin oranges, eggs, and vanilla. Beat for 3-4 minutes on medium-high.
- Add drained oranges and stir until combined.
- Pour batter into prepared baking dish and bake for about 20-25 minutes.
- Remove from oven and cool completely.
- Once cake is cool, blend juice from drained pineapples with the vanilla pudding mix.
- Stir in powdered sugar. Then mix in whipped topping.
- Finally, stir in drained pineapple.
- Spread frosting on cooled cake. Optional: Top with slices of mandarin oranges.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Just made this cake and it was beautiful in the oven until I took it out. It has flatten! Any ideas as to why?
I’m thinking that the oranges weren’t beaten small enough. The weight from them weighed down the cake. I never added the powdered sugar because I thought it would be to sweet for us.
Thank you for the recipe the cake is delicious.
I I am so glad to see that someone else had their cake flatten. Mine actually shrunk from the sides of the pan also. I really think my oranges were beaten small enough. Any other ideas of what I did wrong? I used extra large eggs – could that have done it?
Possibly! But the good news is this cake has a frosting. So any imperfections can be covered up! 😉
My sister told me it is because a used a glass pan. Same thing has happened to me many time with just plain cake. Happened again with this recipe. I googled & it said when using glass pan lower temp to 325 & bake longer. I will just start using my metal pan. Still tasted delicious though, just not as pretty as the picture shown.
I think sometimes the Pyrex pans don’t always heat as evenly as metal pans. There are also hot spots in all ovens and it can cause uneven heating when using a glass or Pyrex dish.
My recipe is different in that the icing is: crushed pineapple and the juice, a large instant vanilla pudding, mixed on mixer then fold in cool whip. Do try it. this way
Hi just thought you should know I was making this cake and had put it in the oven when I started reading the reviews as I read the 3rd review I noticed everyone was mentioning there cake how it was not cooked all the way or it had fallen ..I must tell you I jumped out of my chair and proceeded taking my cake out of the oven (all the time thinking I dont want my cake to fall) but this is what I did and I used extra mandrain oranges but I used a fork and cut the in 3 pieces (2) I baked in a glass pan with the oven on 325 but I baked the cake for 45 minutes and my cake was a sucess ..now I am off to read the reviews on the frosting so I can see what I need to do with it..However I also want to say Thank you for you post it aloud me to take notice and make changes..ty
I live at high altitude (7000 feet). I made this cake for years without any problems. However the last couple of years, it has fallen just at the end of baking. Has there maybe been a change to the boxed cake recipe? Does anyone have any tips to help me out? Otherwise, I LOVE the cake!
The cake turned out perfect. No issues what so ever. The frosting was a whole other situation. Nothing I did would firm it up. It was like soup. The instant pudding calls for 2 cups of liquid and this recipe only called for a quarter of the liquid so I don’t understand why it did what it did.
Dont make the pudding. Just use the pudding mix.
I make a cake very similar, except no powdered sugar in the topping. Topped mine with pecans and cherries. The recipe was given to me by a neighbor 30 yrs ago and is still a favorite. At a dessert auction fund raiser it sold for $70.
I just made this recipe and it’s to die for!!! I subbed the oranges for additional pineapple and added mini marshmallows and 1/2 cup shredded coconut. Such a great summer desert
Yes! I love the idea of coconut! I am totally gonna have to try that next time!
I made this today! It is soooooo good ????
I am green cooker and just want to make this recipe . the quesiton is which one I should use ? Hand mixer or hand blender?
It takes about 10 extra minutes to bake as the top of the cake looked unndone
Can this cake be frozen? I would make in 2 pans and then freeze one with the topping.
I just made this last weekend for the fourth. Such a great summer dessert. The topping is so light and the cake is so fresh. The only thing I did different was not use the powered sugar in the frosting. So yummy! Thanks.
The only size pudding mix I find is 1.34 oz sugar free or 3.4 oz regular. Where do u find 4 oz?
I’ve made this many times and it’s delicious but I always need to bake almost 20 extra minutes?! It’s golden brown on top but 100% soup when timer goes off….. Any idea what I’m doing wrong? My oven works fine too.
Hi Tara, Are you baking the cake on the top rack? I’ve made this cake so many times (I could make it in my sleep – LOL) and the time is always the same. However, it’s possible it could be rack position or perhaps my oven runs hot. I need to do a proper oven test. However, I am so glad you figured it out and you enjoyed it!!
I am an experienced baker, but I had a bad result from this recipe. Followed directions, oven seemed to be working properly and was preheated. I baked it for 22 minutes, sides had pulled away from the pan, tested it with a tooth pick, came out clean. I waited about 20 minutes, turned them onto cooling racks, a little while later they had sunk. Raw dough. Cooking time has to be incorrect, all indications of been done were wrong. I won’t waste my time with this cake again.
Hi Karren! I’m so sorry to hear that! May I ask what brand of cake mix you used? I’m thinking that might be the culprit. I’ve made this cake more times than I can count and have never had this problem and if you read the reviews on here – other people have had success. It’s so disappointing though when a recipe doesn’t go as planned!
Turned out perfect. Mine came out so fluffy and scrumptious! I wouldn’t change a thing. FYI – I used Betty Crocker cake mix. Seems to work better than Duncan Hines. My whole church group wanted the recipe. 🙂
I don’t see why not. It’s not a super heavy tasting dessert so I think a little citrus after a pasta meal would be delicious!
Getting ready to make this and wondering if butter is just softened or melted.
Hi Dianne, it’s just softened.
Is it possible that this original recipe used a box cake that was 18.25 oz? I’m wondering if the new smaller cake mixes that are on the shelves today (15.25 oz) are contributing to the longer cooking times and flattening of the cake out of the oven.
Hi Anna! I tested this with the smaller cake mix boxes. It still worked so I think it has to do with the actual brands that are being used. Some off the cake mix brands (like Duncan Hines) aren’t working so well with these types of recipes. It’s sad because I love the flavor of Duncan Hines cake mix! Perhaps they changed their formulation. Pillsbury seems to be working the best.
Another recipe that looks great! How did it get its name?
I have made this before but this time my frosting was not as stiff. Any suggestions on what I could have done to make it thicker, or stiffer. I made a two layer cake but the top layer is just sliding around.
My aunt told me about using powdered non-dairy creamer. You don’t get that powdered sugar taste, in fact, if you use the regular flavor, you don’t get any taste change at all. I use crisco instead of butter ( sometimes ) because the crisco seems to hold up better to being stirred. Using that creamer, you can make cement if you add enough!LOL
Ha! I did not know that Dianne!! I am going to have to try that sometime! What do you do to sweeten it though since there is no sweetener in non dairy creamer? Do you just add it along with the powdered sugar?
Ya, you make the powdered sugar frosting just as you normally would, sub out butter for crisco to make it hold a little better and then add your creamer to get your consistency. Get the consistency just about to where you want, THEN add your flavoring, otherwise it can get lost.
One thing I like to do is to make this with cream cheese extract/flavoring. You could not tell it from the real thing. I get mine from Watkins, most stores carry it now. Or get the clear vanilla from Watkins as well and you can make pure white frosting, no tint of brown. Add some almond extract along with the clear vanilla and you have royal icing.
I made this cake and loved it except for the frosting has a somewhat grainy taste to it. I mixed the pineapple juice with the instant pudding mix with a whisk, then whisked in the powdered sugar and I”m wondering if I should have used a mixer and beat it instead. Then I folded in my Cool Whip, then folded in the pineapple. Any ideas?
Hi Janice – hmmm perhaps? I’ve never had that happen…wonder if it had to do with the pudding mix itself. Maybe something was wrong with it…
My ex BF would tell me of a cake like this he had as a child .. So I think I finally have found it and we’ll its cooling now and after the icing we will see if it’s the one he remembers…
I hope you both loved it Sasha!
any ideas on how to make the icing so that its spreadable its a bit too thin to spread like a frosting