I got this recipe from my Mom.  I call it “Container Cake”.  Everything you need for this cake can be found in a container and you just dump it in.  It’s great.  We recently made this for a family birthday party and it was a big hit!

Yield:  1 cake

1 yellow cake mix (white works good too if you don’t have yellow on hand)

1 14.5oz can mandarin oranges, undrained

4 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup applesauce

1  20oz can crushed pineapple, undrained

1 package instant vanilla pudding mix

1 8oz tub whipped topping (Cool Whip)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray 13×9 inch pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, oranges, eggs and applesauce.  Pour batter into your prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack.

For the topping, combine the pineapple and pudding mix, and fold in the whipped topping  just until blended.  Spread over cooled cake.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

The mandarines sink to the bottom in this light and luscious concoction.  If you want to get fancy you can carefully remove from the baking pan and split the cake.  Put the wonderful fluffy topping in between the layers as well as on top of the cake.  YUM!