Hummingbird cake with cream cheese frosting, dried pineapple and toffee pecans

Each moist layer of this decadent tropical hummingbird cake is filled with sweet cream cheese icing, then topped with crunchy toffee pecans.

Hummingbird cake with cream cheese frosting, dried pineapple and toffee pecans Credit: Petrina Tinslay

• serves

  8-10

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  1:40 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 ripe pineapple, approximately 1kg
• 180 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1¼ cups raw sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla essence
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup mashed banana (1 large)
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• ⅔ cup pecans, roughly chopped
• 2 cups self raising flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• pinch salt
• 1 quantity cream cheese frosting
• 1 quantity toffee pecans

Makes 1 x 20 cm cake

Instructions

Preheat oven to 100°C. Cut the top and bottom from the pineapple and peel. Cut approximately 10 x 2 mm slices off the pineapple. Arrange the slices in a single layer on a lined baking tray and bake for 1 hour, turn the slices over and return to the oven for another 1 hour or until the pineapple feels dry. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a flat surface.

Core the remaining piece of the pineapple and roughly chop. Place into the bowl of a food processor and process the pineapple until it is crushed but not a fine puree. You will need 250 g of crushed pineapple and juices, for the cake.

Grease and line 2 x 20 cm round cake pans and increase the oven to 180°C. Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer until light and creamy. Add the vanilla and eggs, 1 at a time and beat for 2 minutes after each egg.

Mix through the pineapple, banana, coconut and pecans. Combine the flour, cinnamon and salt, sift into the cake batter and mix through.

Divide the mixture between the 2 cake pans and bake for 35-40 minutes or until cooked when tested.

Remove from the oven and allow to stand in the pans for 15 minutes. Turn onto a cake rack and thoroughly cool.

Secure one of the cakes to your serving platter with a little of the frosting. Place 1 cup of frosting on the bottom cake a smooth-over, top with the second cake, bottom-side up. Cover the cake with the cream cheese frosting and decorate with the pineapple slices and toffee pecans.

Photography by Petrina Tinslay, styling by David Morgan and art direction by Anne Marie Cummins.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.