Here’s another Classic! Ultimate Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake!
So much caramelized yumminess, it’s insane.
Developed centuries ago, this cake has stood the test of time. They used to be cooked in cast iron skillets over an open fire.
Fruit and sugar was added to the bottom of the skillet and cake batter was poured over the mixture. Once cooked, flipping it over onto a plate not only released the cake from the skillet, but showed how pretty the caramelized fruit was on top.
The cake is a fluffy white vanilla cake and it’s made with fresh pineapple, brown sugar and butter for the carmelization.
But of course, if you don’t have fresh pineapple, you can absolutely use canned pineapple. I had a pineapple I bought at the grocery (ALDI) and have wanted to make this vintage recipe to put on the blog.
Finally getting to it. There’s like a million desserts I want to make, but how could I ever leave this off the list? I can’t…it’s the real deal.
This lovely cake deserves to be put on a pedestal.
This cake was made in an 8 inch pan.
One thing you should know.
Don’t use a springform pan.
Lesson learned when you make these types of upside down cakes. Once things start heating up, that glorious butter brown sugar glaze is going to drip and spill in your stove and make a huge mess.
Bake it in a regular 8″ buttered cake pan to get ultimate results.
I love bringing back classics and these cakes are not as hard to make as you would think.
You basically cook the fruit with the butter and brown sugar until tender and then place it in the bottom of your pan. Make and dollop the cake batter on top and then smooth out. Bake away!
Leave to stand for 5 minutes then turn out onto your platter.
Serve warm or room temp. We love fresh whipped cream with cherries with ours, but you could add a yummy scoop of vanilla ice cream and caramel topping, whipped cream and a cherry to delight in the Absolute Ultimate Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake treat.
Let’s Party!
You might love these cake classics too! Super-Moist Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, Ultimate Carrot Cake, Streusel Coffee Cake Pound Cake Dark Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake and this Super-Moist Vanilla Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting.
Ultimate Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Ingredients
Bottom of Cake:
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
Caramelized Pineapple:
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter softened
- 1 large pineapple—peeled quartered, cored and sliced 1/3 inch thick
Vanilla Cake
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter very softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Bottom of Cake:
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
Caramelized Pineapple:
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter softened
- 1 large pineapple—peeled quartered, cored and sliced 1/3 inch thick
Vanilla Cake
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter very softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pan Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- Butter an deep dish 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pan. Sprinkle the bottom with 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar.
Carmelized Pineapple:
- In a large skillet, combine 3/4 cup of brown sugar with 1/2 stick of butter and cook over moderately low heat until the butter is melted. Add the pineapple and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes or pineapple is tender. Using a slotted spoon, arrange the slices in the cake pan, overlapping them if necessary, then pour the pan juices over the pineapple, set aside.
Vanilla Cake:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour baking powder, baking soda and salt, set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, eggs, vanilla, set aside. Using mixer, mix together the softened butter and sugar for 2 minutes on medium speed and then add in the yogurt/egg mixture and mix together.Add flour mixture to the yogurt mixture and mix just until combined and no lumps appear.
- Spoon the batter over the pineapple and spread it evenly.
- Bake for about 40 minutes, until the cake is deep golden. Let cool for 5 minutes on a rack. Run a knife around the edge of the cake, invert it onto a plate and remove the pan.
- Replace any pineapple that may have stuck to the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
Aloha Kim,
I specifically sought out to find a recipe that used fresh pineapple rather than canned since I prefer fresh, and it’s what I had on hand. Thank you for taking the time to create and share this recipe. Yours is hands-down, the MOST delicious pineapple upside down cake I’ve ever had! This is my first time making one (my husband requested pineapple upside down cake for his birthday this year), yet it was simple to make, and we both really enjoyed it. I would make this recipe again 🙂
That is wonderful to hear Jo! I’m so happy you all enjoyed it for your husband’s birthday! Tell him ‘Happy Birthday’ from me and thank you so much for trying it!! xo
Why fresh & not canned? Fresh is about 3x more expensive & imo no different than canned. I just made the cake & it tastes no better than canned.. TY for a response.
Marilyn, I happened to have a fresh pineapple on hand, so I made it with fresh as a different alternative for those who like to use fresh pineapple or have it available, but it’s noted in the post you can use either fresh or canned. I thank you for your feedback, but there’s nothing in the post that says it is better with fresh pineapple versus canned for this type of cake. Sorry, but thank you for your honesty.
Love pineapple upside down cake! This looks so yummy. Pinning!
Thank you so much!
My husband of 50 years always like me making a pineapple upside down cake, but I’ve never made one with fresh pineapple, but today is the day after finding this recipe. I’m giving you five stars without even a taste as I am quite impressed with your technique. So here goes. Will mark your blog and see what else you have going on. Thanks.
Thank you so much Carole! You are so sweet! I hope you find lots of goodies! xo
Hi, I’m just about finished baking, but the center is still wobbly after 40 minutes so ive put it back in for another 10. Is this a mistake? Not sure how these cakes bake.
No the center should not be wobbly, so it’s good that you put it back in the oven. It should be firm on top. I hope it worked out for you after putting it back in the oven Cindy.
Thanks Kim! I’m getting ready to make this now for a lunch get together at my dad’s tomorrow. I was worried I was missing something. Recipe looks delicious and I can’t wait to try it. I am in charge of dessert and wanted to make something with stuff I already had on hand. I found your recipe because I also had a pineapple from Aldi that I needed to use. Lol! This looks so much better than the overly sweet recipes using canned pineapple. I also love that the cake is from scratch and not a box mix since I never purchase those so none sitting around.
This is one of the best recipes I have ever found! The carmelization ofthe pineapple is key! Thank you soooo much for sharing! Yummy!!!!
Great to hear Sherry. I’m so happy you found it,tried it and loved it. 🙂 Thanks so much.