This Mandarin Orange Cake Recipe is the stuff of legends. You may have grown up calling it Pig Pickin Cake. Everyone who tries this cake needs the recipe and then is shocked by how few ingredients you need to make it.
You only need SEVEN ingredients to make this orange pineapple cake, and that includes the frosting!
This is a classic cake recipe that lots of you grew up eating and loving at family gatherings, church picnics, and back yard BBQs. I got this recipe from my neighbor and fell in love immediately.
Anywhere she takes this cake people need the recipe. And for good reason. It is moist, packed with flavor, and best of all it is super easy to throw together.
I made this cake for work and it was a winner! Everyone loved it, I will be making this again and again. Thank you!
Ingredients for Orange Cake
One of the best parts about this cake is how few ingredients you need to make it!
- Yellow Cake Mix: You can pick your favorite brand. Or you can even use a homemade recipe yellow cake mix.
- Mandarin Oranges: These are for the cake and you will want to buy a can of these and not use a fresh mandarin orange, because you are using the juice too and want them completely peeled like you get in the can.
- Oil: I love using vegetable oil most for recipes like this.
- Eggs
- Cool Whip: You can also use my recipe for stabilized whipped cream.
- Vanilla Pudding Mix: This is for the frosting and you want to make sure you buy instant pudding mix, not the cook and serve kind. You will just be using the dry mix.
- Crushed Pineapple: You will be using a 20 ounce can of crushed pineapple for the frosting, and you will use both the juice and the fruit.
How to Make Pig Pickin Cake
- Make the cake. Combine the cake mix (you are not following the instructions on the box or using the ingredients it calls for), mandarin oranges, eggs, and oil. Pour into a 9 by 13 inch pan and bake for 40 minutes.
- Make the frosting. Combine the cool whip, the undrained pineapples, and the dry pudding mix. Beat until smooth.
- Frost the cake. Once the cake is completely cooled, frost it with the frosting, serve and enjoy.
Making Ahead and Storing
For best results, this cake should be made right before serving or up to 24 hours in advance.
Leftovers should be covered and stored in the refrigerator. They can be stored for up to four days.
FAQ
Nope! You can add them as they are in the can. They will break up a little as your mixing all the ingredients together, and that is just perfect.
Correct! The pineapple and the juice go into the frosting. I promise it won’t be too runny. Don’t forget that you re also adding dry pudding mix.
Nope! They get added without draining.
No. Whipped cream isn’t stable and it alone can’t be used as a frosting. You can, however, use my stabilized whipped cream recipe in place of Cool Whip.
Bundt cakes are really tricky and can’t be made straight from another cake recipe without tweaks being made.
Other Easy Desserts
I have lots of great dessert recipes that take short cuts from store bought ingredients. I love baking from scratch, but I love how fun and easy these are for the kids to make too!
If you make this great orange pineapple cake or any of my other desserts be sure to leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
Mandarin Orange Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 box yellow cake mix (just the dry cake mix – 15.25 ounces)
- 1 15 ounce can mandarin oranges (undrained)
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
For the Frosting
- 12 ounces cool whip (or our recipe for stabilized whipped cream)
- 1 20 ounce can crushed pineapple undrained
- 1 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding mix (just the pudding mix)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 by 13 inch pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, with a hand mixer or a spoon, mix together the yellow cake mix, the can of mandarin oranges, the eggs and the vegetable oil. Pour into the prepare pan. Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs, being careful not to over bake.
- Let the cake completely cool.
- In a large bowl whip together the cool whip, pineapple, and vanilla pudding mix. Spread over the cooled cake and serve!
Carol says
This cake has been a family favorite for going on 3 generations! Have made with sugar-free items (such as Cool Whip, pudding mix, etc.), and it turned out great. It’s especially great using coconut oil for the vegetable oil. I do drain the pineapple, as the frosting firms up much better (but you have to get it on the cake pretty quickly); however, over-beating the frosting with a mixer can be a mistake, cause it tends to warm up the Cool Whip and turn it into liquid–yuk. And, yes, the cake freezes great! We made it for a wedding last year, and the guests couldn’t stop coming back for seconds!! Getting ready to make 225 servings for another wedding in a few days–used 11 x 15 pans for a double layer cake (each one serves 45). It is SO much better than the usual wedding cake, and if you plate the slices the “rough” look of the frosting isn’t even an issue–and people truly LOVE it! Thanks so much for passing on the tradition with this great recipe–definitely a keeper!
Samantha says
I’m so glad I found this recipe! When I was a little girl, we went to see my grandmother every summer. She would make this cake and I had lost the recipe I had gotten from her. Definitely one of my favorites! Thank you so much for sharing this. ❤
I’m so glad to hear it, Samantha!
Mugsy says
I saw a post from somebody mentioning trying this cake at a church social. She said it was wet so she ate what she could and left the rest. I love mandarin oranges and I love pineapple so I decided to give it a try. I made one change, don’t we all. I didn’t have 12 ounces of cool whip. I have just about a tablespoon short of 8 ounces and used what I had. Did I love it? I sure did. Will I make it again? I sure will. Even with the shortage of whipped topping, it was plenty and I didn’t find it wet at all. However, I can see where you could have a wet cake if you let it sit out too long. It needs to stay cool or that topping is going to start running.. just the nature of whipped cream.
I’m so glad you liked it!
Elaine says
I love this cake and had lost the recipe,thank you for posting !! Just got cake part out of oven…..yummy 😋!!
I’m so glad!
Linda Weinel says
I made the Mandarin Orange cake recipe but I used cool whip for the icing. Do you thaw the cool whip before hand or use it in the frozen state?
Let it thaw in the fridge overnight first.
Judy says
Why so much oil?
This is definitely a very rich and moist cake, and the amount of oil added lends to that.
MaryAnn says
This is the MOST moist cake I have EVER tasted! The cake and frosting are simply outstanding and if you are not careful, they both can be addicting ( as in a late night snack)
I will certainly be making this again, and again and again.
I’m so glad that you liked it!