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This Pig Pickin’ Cake is a beloved southern US classic, light and fruity, especially during hog roasts. It’s a delicious pineapple-orange treat for almost every occasion!
Pig Pickin’ Cake
“Pig Pickin’ Cake” is a traditional southern cake that’s oh-so-good, and I have to introduce it to y’all today!!
While I couldn’t figure out its origin just from research, I can tell you it’s always been served at pig roasts where guests “picked” the tender meat off the cooked pig. (Which is why many southerners refer to barbecues as a “pig pickin'”!) You’d find this super moist and fluffy vanilla cake on the dessert tables.
And it’s absolutely bursting with bright summer flavors! Think of a cake stuffed with mandarin oranges wrapped in sweet, fruity pineapple chunk frosting. Sounds amazing, right? It’s perfect for cleaning the palette after a big barbeque or eating anywhere for any reason.
FYI, Pig Pickin’ Cake also goes by the names “orange delight,” “orange sunshine” cake, or even “pig lickin’ cake.” They all seem to refer to the same dessert, more or less, though!
This is another one of those regional favorites I think deserves to be spread around everywhere! I hope you enjoy this southern favorite!
Pig Pickin’ Cake: Ingredients & Substitutions
For this Pig Pickin’ Cake recipe, you will need …
Ingredients
For the cake:
- yellow cake mix, eggs, and vegetable oil – make things easy for yourself, and grab cake mix (plus the ingredients) from the store for this! No one will judge, I promise!!
- mandarin oranges – you’ll mix these with your cake mix, including the juice. That’s how you get the most citrus flavor, of course.
For the topping:
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- frozen whipped topping – this will be the base of your topping, to which you’ll add
- crushed pineapple, vanilla pudding mix – these two ingredients for extra flavor!
How to make Pig Pickin’ Cake
First, you’ll prep your supplies. As with any baking project, spray your 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray, and preheat your oven to 350°F.
Second, you’ll create your batter. As stated above, you can use plain vanilla/yellow cake mix. Follow the box instructions (which usually means mixing in eggs and vegetable oil), then add your oranges. Feel free to start from scratch if you want for the cake base, but I know I’m all about being efficient!!
Third, you’ll bake your batter. Pour the batter into the 9×13 inch baking dish. Be aware that the batter will look VERY thin. This is normal! It’ll go in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until it passes the “toothpick test.”
Fourth, make your topping and finish the cake. You’ll mix your whipped topping, pineapples, and vanilla pudding mix together. When the cake is finished, remove it from the oven and pour this topping right over it once it’s cooled. After the cake chills in the fridge for a few hours, you’ll have yourself a delicious Pig Pickin’ Cake!
Pig Pickin’ Cake: FAQs
For the moistest and fluffiest Pig Cake, try setting aside a day or two ahead to make the cake itself, and then only add the topping and chill it a few hours before serving. This gives all those sweet fruit juices and the cake time to get to know each other.
It makes one 9×13 cake with about 15-18 servings, more or less!!
It takes 15 minutes to prep the ingredients and 25-30 to cook them. However, you’ll want to let the cake sit in the fridge for 5 or so hours after it’s done, as stated before.
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Pig Pickin’ Cake
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Equipment
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 box yellow cake mix, 15.25 oz.
- 1 can mandarin oranges, juice reserved, 11 oz.
- 4 large eggs
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
For the topping
- 1 container frozen whipped topping, thawed, 16 oz.
- 1 can crushed pineapple, well-drained, 20 oz.
- 1 box instant vanilla pudding mix, 3.4 oz.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- With an electric hand mixer, mix together the cake mix, reserved juice, eggs, and oil until well combined. Gently stir in the orange segments. Pour batter into the prepared pan. The batter will be thin.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cake tests done.
- Remove the cake from the oven to a wire rack and allow the cake to cool completely.
- Mix together the whipped topping, drained pineapple, and instant pudding mix. Evenly spread the topping over the cooled cake. Refrigerate the cake for at least four hours before serving.
Notes
- This cake can also be made as a round layer cake. Bake the cake in two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I ended up throwing away quite a bit of topping. The recipe makes much more than you need.