I adore this recipe, and so did Princess Diana. She chose this recipe for her wedding cake.

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs, beaten with mixer
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
8 ounces crushed pineapple, with juice
1 1/2 cups chopped bananas
1 cup chopped apples
3/4 cup coconut
3/4 cup chopped nuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch pan.

Mix together the oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla extract. Sift the dry ingredients; add to mixture. Add remaining ingredients. Bake for 48 minutes.

Cool, then frost with Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

2-3 cups confectioners sugar, depending on how sweet you like it

1 teaspoon vanilla

I’m woefully behind on blogging, but I have good reasons. A few weeks ago our daughter gave birth to her second child, an adorable little girl. What joy! Just two days later, my 91-year-old father took a turn for the worst. I flew down to Florida to spend his last days with him. I posted a bit about that on Facebook.

Dad was a beloved pediatrician, who raised several generations of kids. When I was growing and later, too, we couldn’t walk down the street or go anywhere without someone coming up to greet him. He retired at 78, and only because he felt his hearing was no longer good enough to hear clearly through the stethoscope.

I learned so much from my dad–a true love of life, a great enjoyment of books and learning, how to listen to others, and to always keep an open mind. Dad didn’t swear much, but not for the usual reasons. “The English language is so diverse and rich,” he said. “Why demean it with swear words everyone else uses?”

Grief is an interesting emotion. It fills me with an awful sorrow, and at times I am literally sick to my stomach. Five minutes later I am ravenous. As for creativity, I find that I’m not up to focusing on writing fiction, but there are so many stories I want to tell, and I know that will soon pass.

That’s all for now.

Thanks for letting me share. I’ll post again soon, I promise.