CAKE:
Drain pineapple juices into measuring cup, reserving 2 tablespoons for fruit/brown sugar mixture. Prepare yellow cake mix as directed on package, but substitute pineapple juice for water. Set batter aside.

Put butter in 13x9 baking pan and place in the pre-heated oven to melt. Remove from oven, and add brown sugar and 2 tablespoons reserved pineapple juice. Mix gently with a fork to blend. Arrange drained pineapple slices in bottom of pan, place halved cherries in center of each slice, then fill in spaces with drained, crushed pineapple. Pour batter over fruit gently and bake for 45 - 55 minutes, or until done. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack before inverting onto serving dish. Makes 12 servings.

 A note from Vickie: "This recipe came from my very first Home Economics class when I was 13 years old, and was the teacher's favorite recipe from home. It's still great all these years later!"

CAKE:
In mixing bowl, cream together shortening and sugar; add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Mix cocoa and food coloring together and add to creamed sugar mixture. Add flour, salt, and buttermilk (or sour milk) alternately. Mix soda and vinegar in a bowl, then add to cake batter. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes, or until done.

FROSTING:
In a saucepan, whisk together the 1/3 cup flour and milk and cook, stirring, until thickened; cool in the refrigerator. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla with mixer. Add cooled flour and milk mixture a little at a time (make ahead of cake so that it has plenty of time to cool). Beat well, adding milk or cream as needed. Frost layers, sides, and top of cake. Makes 12 servings.

 A note from Vickie: "Aunt Eula made this recipe the summer we went to visit her in 1970. I loved it then, and love it now. The frosting is wonderful used on other cakes too."

CAKE:
In large mixing bowl sift together flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, baking powder, 1 tsp. salt. Add milk and shortening and blend on low speed with mixer to moisten, then beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Add vanilla and egg whites and continue beating at medium speed for 2 more minutes. Pour batter into pans and bake for 20 - 30 minutes, or until done. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely before icing.

FROSTING:
In small, deep bowl beat egg whites, salt and vanilla at medium speed until frothy. Gradually add sugar, one tablespoon at a time, beating at high speed, until soft peaks form and sugar is dissolved. In small saucepan over medium heat, bring corn syrup to a boil. Pour in thin stream over egg whites, beating at highest speed until mixture forms stiff peaks.

Cover cake with frosting and sprinkle coconut over top and sides. Makes 12 servings.

 A note from Vickie: "For some reason, my grandmother use to bake this in 2 - 9" square pans. Maybe she didn't have round ones at the time? But it always looked fantastic, and when she served it she would cut the cake in half and then into 1" slices. Very pretty! She also sometimes filled it with lemon filling, then frosted the outside with the cooked coconut icing. I've included a lemon filling recipe below."

In small bowl, beat egg yolks. Stir about 1/4 cup of the hot mixture into yolks, then add yolk mixture back to saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter, lemon peel and lemon juice. Let cool completely before using as filling on White Coconut Cake.

CAKE:
In medium bowl, sift dry ingredients together 3 times. Add eggs and fruit cocktail. Mix well. Pour into greased pan and bake for 55 - 60 minutes, or until done. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert onto serving plate. When completely cool, frost cake with icing.

FROSTING:
In saucepan, melt butter; add sugar, milk and beaten egg yolk. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add rest of ingredients. While frosting is warm, ice cake.

 A note from Vickie: "My mother found this recipe in a 'Parade Magazine' when I was young. She made it for Christmas dessert one year, and it became a favorite. When she was older this was the only cake she ever baked, and the only one my dad ever asked for. It's a family favorite. I usually remove the grapes from the fruit cocktail before adding to the batter, and replace them with 1/4 cup plumped raisins."

CAKE:
In medium bowl mix flour, cocoa, soda and powder. In large bowl, combine eggs, sugar and vanilla and beat on high speed with mixer for 3 minutes or until light and fluffy, scraping occasionally. Reduce to low and beat in mayonnaise until blended.

Add flour/cocoa mixture alternately with water. Begin and end with flour (add flour in 4 parts). Pour into prepared pans. Bake at 350�F for 30 minutes or until pick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely before icing.

FROSTING:
In small, deep bowl beat all ingredients together until smooth, starting with 2 tbsp. milk and adding more if needed. Cover cake with frosting. Makes 12 servings.

CAKE:
In large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients in the order given; blend well on low speed, scraping bowl often, then turn to high speed and beat 4 more minutes. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake 35 - 40 minutes or until done. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely before icing.

FROSTING:
In small, deep bowl beat all frosting ingredients together until smooth. Cover cake with frosting. Makes 12 servings.

 A note from Vickie: "This is my husband's absolute favorite spice cake! He looked at me a bit funny when I told him it had tomato soup in it, but it really does make the cake soft and moist."

CAKE:
In large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients in the order given; blend well on low speed, scraping bowl often, then turn to high speed and beat 2 more minutes. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake 30 - 40 minutes or until done. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely before icing.

FROSTING:
In small, deep bowl beat all frosting ingredients together until smooth. Cover cake with frosting. Makes 12 servings.

CAKE:
In large mixing bowl, combine dry cake mix, butter, peanut butter, eggs and water; blend on low speed, scraping bowl often, then turn to high speed and beat 2 more minutes. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake 30 - 35 minutes or until done. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely before icing.

FROSTING:
In small, deep bowl beat all frosting ingredients together until smooth. Cover cake with frosting. Makes 12 servings.

 A note from Vickie: "This is one of our favorite recipes. It's also great with chocolate frosting."

CAKE:
In mixing bowl, nuts and cut up glazed fruits; cover with sherry and let stand overnight.

In large mixing bowl, beat sugar, shortening, eggs and spices together until fluffy. Add applesauce. Sift flour, soda and salt together, then add to creamed mixture. Fold in fruit/nut/sherry combination. Fill loaf pans with batter and bake slowly, for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Cool 10 - 15 minutes on wire rack, then remove from pans. Cool completely. Wrap completely and allow to age at least one month in cool place before slicing.

 A note from Vickie: "Aunt Penny and I use to make these every year just before Thanksgiving when we lived in California. After the cakes had cooled, we would soak cheesecloth in brandy and wrap the cakes; then wrap them again in plastic wrap. We would soak the cakes twice with brandy. They tasted delicious, but then I love fruitcake. lol!"

In mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in dry ingredients and vanilla. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes or until done. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan. Cool completely before slicing.

 A note from Vickie: "For Poppy Seed Pound Cake, substitute almond flavoring for vanilla extract, and add 1 1/2 tbsp. poppy seeds to batter before baking.

For Lemon Pound Cake, substitute lemon juice or flavoring for vanilla extract. After the cake has cooled, slice it into four even layers. Prepare lemon filling from above recipe and cool slightly. Use a clean loaf pan, lined with wax paper and layer cake, then filling; cake, then filling; repeat, ending with top of pound cake. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled. Remove from pan and place on serving plate. Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting shown above, and slice in 1" pieces to serve."

In mixing bowl, beat eggs and oil together. Mix dry ingredients together and add to egg mixture. Stir in shredded apple, nuts, and vanilla. Mix well. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until done. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Glaze with thin cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with extra nuts, as desired.