Happy Pride one and all! If you didn’t know June is Pride Month so with love in the air and rainbows everywhere we decided to spend the week making a rainbow of our own…out of food!
We’ve already done red and orange—Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Strawberry Rhubarb Pie + Gluten-Free, Vegan Sweet Potato Chips—respectively, it’s yellow’s day!!!
It’s also the perfect say for yellow because the sun has been shining and the weather is a gorgeous 90 degrees Fahrenheit. We are in Canada though so 32 degrees Celsius.
In general yellow is not the first color I gravitate to, but when I sat down tot think about it a bunch of things I love are yellow—pineapples, bananas, potatoes, corn, s, lemons, golden beets, some pears and apples, cornbread, Five Alive, bees, Spongebob, Minions, sunshine, Daffodils…need I go on?
Ooo and of course Pineapple Upside Down Cake! It may not be the first cake you think of. I think a lot of people see it as an old-fashioned style cake your grandparents’ would have made, but it’s amazingly delicious in it’s own right and deserves to shed that steroeotype.
Fun Fact: Pineapple Upside Down Cake holds a special place in LeBraun and I’s hearts as it was our wedding cake! Yupp we cut into and served fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake to our wedding and reception guests…wiiiitthh a side of s’mores! ;)
Second Fun Fact: At the beginning of this June we celebrated our 10th month wedding anniversary! Where is the time going??? I feel like I need to write that sentence as I would have back in AOL messenger days, like WhErE iS tHe TiMe GoInG??? Because that’s just how I feel.
Especially for Summer Pineapple Upside Down Cake is a fantastic alternative. It’s easy to make, moist yet fluffy, and a refreshing, light addition to any get together (or if you’re like us sweet tooth addiction).
The bright citrus of the pineapples combined with the sweetness of the buttery brown sugar mixture is—now say this with an accent please—perfecto! Both seep down into the cake for that melt-in-your-mouth sensation!
Bonus: The juices and sugar make it almost impossible to make a dry cake.
Pineapple may be the one people think of most often but it is not the only “Upside Down Cake.” There’s German Chocolate Upside Down cake, Bananas Foster Upside Down Cake, Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake and more. Although you can “base” a cake with pretty much any juicy fruit like peaches, strawberries, apricots, blueberries…Mmm!
Upside Down Cake just refers to a cake that is baked in a single pan with its toppings of the bottom, hence upside down. Then the cake is flipped and served “right side up.”
This process allows the juices and sugars to create either a crust on the top or soak into the cake once its flipped right side up.
Lastly you can make this as two 8-inch rounds but i like the individuals because they’re so cute and everyone gets the same amount. Assuming they’re civilized and share with everyone before getting seconds. And trust me, it’s a tall order. (Psst—we didn’t share!)
GLUTEN-FREE, DAIRY-FREE PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN MINI CAKES
yields: 24+ mini cakes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegan butter substitute (like Earth Balance)
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 (20-oz) can pineapple rings in juice
- Maraschino cherries
- Handful of walnuts or pecans, pieced (optional but recommended)
- 1 box of Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Yellow Cake Mix (like Betty Crocker or King Arthur Flour)
- Ingredients on the cake mix box
Directions
- Preheat over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Melt the butter substitute in small saucepan.
- Mix in brown sugar, cinnamon and ginger. Remove from heat once combined.
- Divide the mixture amongst the molds of two large muffins tins.
- Drain but save the juice from the canned pineapple rings.
- Add one ring per mold atop the brown sugar base. (Remember: the base is actually the topping as we’ll flip the cakes over at the end)
- Place a cherry (remove the stem if applicable) in the center of each pineapple ring.
- If you’re adding nuts, scatter the pieces amongst the molds.
- Follow the box’s directions for making the cake batter, REPLACING the water/milk/liquid called for with the saved pineapple ring juice. If you don't have enough pineapple juice, make up the difference with the original liquid called for on the box.
- Fill each mold roughly 3/4 the way to the top with the batter. There will be leftover batter (n1).
- Bake for 20-35 minutes or until the edges of each mini cake is brown and the top is firm. Remove one for testing if needed. :)
- When the mini cakes are ready, carefully remove the pans from the over and run a small spatula (I like to use a plastic takeaway spoon) around the edges of each mold.
- Allow cakes to cool 3-5 minutes. In the meantime, lay down a piece of parchment paper slightly larger than 1 of the tins on your counter.
- Swiftly turn one tin over onto the parchment paper, wait 30 seconds, then slowly life the tin off.
- Gently lift out any cakes that didn’t fully detached upside down.
- Place mini cakes on serving tray and repeat process with second tin.
- Serve and enjoy while warm! The cakes are also fantastic the next day when the juices have soaked through more, but the consistency will be mushy-er.
Notes: n1. I use the leftovers to make a few mini cakes without the pineapple rings. If you have more pineapple rings, you are more than welcome to make more upside down mini cakes.
