Pineapple upside down cake is a classic retro dessert. It is a great dessert to make if you need a sweet fix in a rush as it only takes around ten minutes to prepare. If you want the cake to be a little bit less sweet, do not add the glace cherries, as the syrup the cherries are coated in with soak into the cake making it taste sweeter. The cherries can be swapped out with chopped walnuts instead which will add more texture to the cake. When the cake is placed in a hot oven the moisture from the pineapples will make steam, which will then poach the pineapples cooking them evenly and this will also help to the cake not to dry out in the oven. The hardest part of this recipe is probably turning out the upside down cake.
Ingredients:
Top of the cake:
50g Soften Butter/Baking Spread
50g Soft Light Brown Sugar
7 x Pineapple Rings
13 x Glace Cherry
Cake
100g Soften Butter/Baking Spread
100g Caster Sugar
2 x Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Essence/Pate
1 tbsp Pineapple Syrup
100g Self-raising Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1. Pre heat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4. Next mix together the soften butter/baking spread and light brown sugar until the mixture starts to become pale.
2. Line a 20cm round cake tin with baking parchment. Spread the butter and sugar mixture on top of the baking parchment.
3. Place the pineapple rings in a circle formation and then place the cherries in the center of the pineapple rings.
4. Now in a large mixing bowl add the soften butter/baking spread and caster sugar. Mix using a stand mixer until the butter-sugar starts to become pale.
5. While the butter-sugar mixture is being mixed, start adding the eggs one by one. This will prevent the mixture from curdling and producing a tough sponge.
6. Scrap down the sides of the bowl and then add the self-raising flour, vanilla essence/paste and the pineapple syrup. Mix until all the ingredients have been fully incorporated.
7. Pour the cake batter over the top of the pineapple and cherry base. Smooth the mixture down with an off set spatula. Also try tapping the baking tin on the counter to help even the cake batter.
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the top becomes golden brown. To check if the cake is done place a skewer through the center of the cake. If the skewer comes out clean then the cake is done.
9. Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes before turning out on top a plate. This will prevent the cake from breaking when being turned out. This cake is best served warm with either freshly made custard or even ice cream.