The Best Cake I've Ever Made -- Piña Colada Layer Cake

I just made this cake for my mom's birthday and I truly believe it is hands down the best cake I've ever made. I'll probably get some flack for this, but I used boxed cake mix. But that's what makes this recipe so easy, especially if you have a 6 month old that requires your attention almost 24/7. I didn't come up with this recipe on my own, but instead took bits and pieces from a few recipes i found through Pinterest. The original recipes I used can be found here, here and here. I'm sure every single one of those recipes are delicious, but I prefer to do things my own way. My end result looked like this (and my mom loved it!)

Ingredients

For cake:

1 box of vanilla or yellow cake mix (I used Betty Crocker vanilla, but it's really just personal preference)

2 8 or 9" round cake pans

1 skinny straw

1 can of crushed pineapple in juice

1 can cream of coconut

1 bag of sweetened shredded coconut

For frosting:

1 8 oz. block of cream cheese (room temperature)

1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter (softened)

1 ½ cups of confectioner's sugar 

Directions

1. Follow directions on box of cake mix and bake in two 8 or 9" round cake pans. Make sure to lightly coat pans with cooking spray and flour so the cake doesn't stick to the pan.

2. Let cake rounds cool completely and place side by side on cookie sheet.

3. Poke random holes throughout each cake round with the plastic straw. 

4. Slowly pour a generous amount of the cream of coconut over the holes of the cake letting it soak in.

5. Drain the juice from the crushed pineapple and spread a few spoonfuls of crushed pineapple over the top of each cake round. This not only adds to the piña aspect of the cake, but also covers the holes, making it easier to frost. 

6. Prepare the cream cheese frosting by beating the cream cheese and unsalted butter together for about 4 minutes on the highest speed with a hand mixer or stand mixer. The consistency should be fluffy and smooth. Slowly beat in confectioner's sugar. I started out only adding a cup of the sugar because I figured I could always make it sweeter by adding more but couldn't make it less sweet. The cake is sweet enough itself so the frosting doesn't have to be too sweet unless you want it that way. I also added a little bit of the crushed pineapple to my frosting mixture just to make it a little more appropriate for a Piña Colada cake.

7. Spread frosting on top of the cake round you have chosen as your bottom layer and place the other layer on top. Cover the entire cake with the remaining frosting and coat with shredded coconut. If you want, you can also add a little bit of toasted coconut to the top. Serve by itself or with whipped cream and strawberries!