Sunday Sides and Suppers

This recipe is based off a Sundrop cake. Sundrop is actually a local brand of soda, so those of you outside Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, and parts of Georgia probably haven't heard of it. Think Mt. Dew with about six times the citrus flavor. Anyway, Sundrop cakes are incredibly moist, flavorful, and lovely.

I wanted something a little out of the ordinary to take to a potluck a few years back, and decided to riff off the old recipe using dreamsicles as my inspiration.

I'm afraid there's no nutritional information available for this one currently, but needless to say, this one isn't a health food.

Dreamsicle Cake

1 Box Orange Cake Mix
1 Large Box Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix
2 Tbsp. Orange Extract
8 oz. Orange Soda

Icing

8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)
16 oz. Powdered Sugar
1 Tbsp. Vanilla

Preheat oven according to the directions on the box of the cake mix you're using. Prepare cake mix according to the directions on the box. Stir in extract, packet of pudding mix, and soda. (Note: Be careful on the soda measure. Too much added will make the cake turn out gummy. If the weather is very humid, you may want to omit an ounce or two.) Pour into two greased 8 inch round pans and bake according to the directions on the box. Let cool thoroughly before frosting.

To mix frosting, warm cream cheese for about forty-five to sixty seconds on high in the microwave, or until it can be easily stirred. Pour in powdered sugar and vanilla and blend until smooth and even. Refrigerate for fifteen minutes or up to a day in advance if covered. If you wait more than half an hour, stir before frosting.

Makes roughly 12 servings.

* The picture is courtesy of my mother-in-law, who made this one with the girls' elder cousin one afternoon this fall.