Snowball Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 envelopes plain gelatin
• 4 Tbsp. cold water
• 1 cup boiling water
• juice of one lemon
• 1 large can crushed pineapple, well drained
• 2 small cans mandarin oranges, well drained
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large angel food cake, broken into bite-size pieces
• 6 cups Cool Whip*
• 1 1/2 cups coconut
• maraschino cherries, well drained

Note: For those of you not in the States, Cool Whip is a non-dairy substitute for whipped cream. It is sold in the freezer section of the grocery store, and you let it thaw before using. Many people prefer it to real whipped cream. It is more stable than whipped cream, so is better suited to this particular cake.

The original recipe called for three packets of Dream Whip, prepared according to package directions. This is a shelf stable powder that you mix with milk and vanilla and whip until it is light and fluffy. It is actually pretty good, especially since you can have it on hand for when you want whipped cream and don't have it.

Directions:

Mix the gelatin in the cold water to soften. Add the boiling water and stir until dissolved. Add the lemon juice, pineapple, orange sections, and sugar and mix well. Put in refrigerator to chill. When the gelatin mixture is partially set, fold in 4 cups of the Cool Whip until well blended.

Using a decorative glass bowl, or a trifle bowl, or a 9 x 13 inch pan, arrange alternating layers of cake and the gelatin and fruit mixture. It looks very nice if you arrange the top in small mounds so that it looks like snowballs when done. Make each snowball the size of one serving. Chill this 6 hours, or overnight.

When the cake mixture is thoroughly chilled, spread the top with the remaining 2 cups of Cool Whip. Sprinkle the top evenly with the coconut, then put a maraschino cherry in the top of each snowball (whole or halved).

Make sure you drain the fruit really well or your gelatin mixture might not set up as well as it should.

This cake was a family favorite. We had a lot of recipe requests for this delicious dessert.

You can use flavored gelatin, but I like it best with the plain. It allows the flavors of the fruit to shine.

By Free2B from North Royalton, OH