I have always thought of a Pineapple Upside Down cake as a cake perfect for Spring weather!  Perhaps it is the glossy thin batter or the bright colors of the pineapple slices and the maraschino cherries (the cherries are a must; do not omit!) that bring to mind the Spring flowers that I know are just waiting to appear after a long winter’s hibernation, but this cake always begins food whispering to me once winter loosens her icy grip.  Today was definitely THE day!

I finished the prep work and had the cake in the oven in 30 minutes today.  Basically you have four easy steps: preparing the skillet with melted butter and a layer of brown sugar and pineapple juice, layering in the pineapple slices and cherries, creaming your shortening and sugar then adding the dry ingredients with enough reserved juice from the pineapple to make a thin batter.  That’s it.  Pour the batter over the sugar-fruit-cherry mixture and bake!

I bake this cake in a 10″ cast iron skillet just as my mama and grandma did.  The brown sugar-pineapple juice layer browns perfectly in cast iron and the size is perfect for a cake to serve seven. If you grew up enjoying this sweet delicate cake you know how good it is with a glass of cold milk on a day where you can smell Spring in the air.  Make one today and open your arms wide to this most beautiful season of the year.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients

1-(8.5 oz.) can sliced pineapple, juice reserved
3 T. butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
Maraschino cherries, from jar, drained
1/3 cup Crisco shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour, sifted
1-1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions Preheat oven to 350. Drain the pineapple reserving the juice. Melt butter in medium-sized cast iron skillet (no larger than 10”). In small bowl, mix the brown sugar with 1 T. of the reserved pineapple juice from the can and sprinkle this over the butter. Arrange the pineapple rings on top of this mixture leaving them whole but trimming when you need to fit the curved bottom of the skillet. Add a maraschino cherry in the center of each whole pineapple ring.

In large mixing bowl, cream together the shortening and white sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla, beat until mixture is fluffy. In small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt and add to shortening mixture alternately with at least 1/2 cups of the reserved pineapple juice (if you don’t have 1/2 cup left; add water to get it), beating after each addition. The batter will be thin. Pour the batter over the pineapple mixture in the skillet and use spatula to spread to edges of pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes after removing from oven then invert the skillet over your serving platter and turn out cake to platter.