pineapple upside down cake

This pineapple upside-down cake is one of our favorite recipes. The cake is wonderfully dense, with a slight almond flavor and with sweetness from caramel and pineapple.

It actually gets better after it sits for a day or two.

Preparation and cooking time: About an hour and a half.

Topping:

• 1 cup of firmly packed brown sugar

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter

• 1 can (20 oz) of pineapple slices

Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

• 6 Tbsp cake flour

• 6 Tbsp of ground almonds (from about 2 oz of whole almonds)

• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 3/4 cups of sugar

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature

• 4 large eggs

• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 3/4 cup sour cream

Start by making the caramel topping. Take brown sugar and butter and combine and melt in a saucepan on medium heat until sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbly, this should take several minutes. Pour mixture into a 9 x 12 inch pyrex dish with 2 inch high sides. Arrange pineapple slices in a single layer on top of the caramel mixture.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Whisk the flours, almonds, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the sugar and butter together until light. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add dry ingredients alternately with sour cream in 2 additions each, beating well after each addition. Pour cake batter over caramel and pineapple in pan.

Bake cake until tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 12 to 14 servings.

Jeffrey Cowgill 2007