This pound cake is a favorite for people who love a moist yellow cake with sweetness of pineapple and coconuts. The rum is the key to the blue ribbons.

INGREDIENTS

2 ½ cups sugar
1¼ cups butter (room temperature)
5 large eggs
½ Vanilla bean (or teaspoon vanilla extract)
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup whole milk
2/3 Malibu Rum
2 cups cut fresh pineapple (can crushed pineapple may be cloudy due to unstrained juices when canned)
½ cup crushed coconut (sweetened)

DIRECTIONS

1.    Prepare Bundt cake pan or tube pan with Bakers Joy or with flour and shortening and waxing and preheat over at 350 degrees.
2.    In mixer, beat butter and sugar until incorporated. Scrape bowl and add 1 egg at a time and beat med till each egg is just blended in bowl.
3.    Take the moist vanilla bean and slice long ways through the bean. Scrape the pod inside and add the vanilla seeds into the mix and beat on high for 5 minutes. If using extract, add the vanilla and beat on high for 5 minutes.
4.    While the batter is mixing in the mixer, sift the flour and baking powder together in a separate bowl.
5.    Add the milk and 1/3 cup rum together in another bowl.
6.    Alternately add the flour mix and rum mix into 3 different rotations on medium till all is incorporated.
7.    Scrape bowl and add the pineapple with the coconut flakes and fold into the batter.
8.    Pour into prepared mold up 3/4 high. You may have extra enough to make 2 cakes, depending on the size of pan. Wrap remaining batter and store in refrigerator.
9.    Bake 350 degrees in preheated oven for 50 minutes or when toothpick comes clean when inserted in middle. Immediately after removal of cake from oven, pour remaining rum over cake and seal with aluminum foil. Set aside to cool on rack for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and set to cool additional time on cooling rack or set on 10 inch dolly on cake dish. (I always cut the cake even with pan to let the cake sit flat.)