Fruit Cocktail Cake

In Anna and Kristina's Grocery Bag, the test-driving twosome from The Shopping Bags narrow their focus to the kitchen and put cookbooks to the test.In each episode, Anna and Kristina try out and review recipes, ingredients, appliances and food prep techniques to see if the average cook can re-create the beautifully photographed meals. At the end of the show, a guest chef or food expert will give a final evaluation of the meal and decide if the cookbook delivers the goods.

A couple of nights ago they test drove the Fruit Cocktail Cake to rave reviews. The recipe came from TheBestOfBridge cookbook. You can check it out yourself at http://www.thebestofbridge.com/ Oh by the way, the Fettuccine with Sambuca and Cranberries sucked!

If you don't have self-rising flour, you can make your own. For each cup of all-purpose flour, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Ingredients
2 cups flour (I think they mean self-rising flour, which I didn't have. AP will work)
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 regular size can (14 ozs or so?) Fruit Cocktail

Icing:
1 stick butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup evaporated milk
coconut (depends on how much coconut you want. Probably a medium sized bag worth)

Preheat oven for 350. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for the cake. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out fairly clean. Start checking around 25-30 minutes. Take the cake out, but don't let it cool for too long before you put the icing on. You want the cake to still be warm when you put the icing on.

To make the icing: Cook the butter, sugar, and milk in a saucepan until they come to a boil, then turn down heat and add coconut.

Poke holes with a fork into the cooked cake and then spread the icing onto the cake while still warm.