Honey Pineapple Upside Down Cake – Recipe!

I just love old fashioned desserts like pineapple upside down cake and what makes this one extra-special is that I use honey for the topping, instead of brown sugar, for a fresher take.  Pineapple upside down cake has been around for decades and it’s something most of our mom’s used to bake, and it still has a delightful place on any dessert table.  The ingredients are simple, and I did used canned pineapple, even though you could use fresh, especially if you possess one of those pineapple gadgets that remove the core so easily.  Well, I don’t.  So, Dole did the trick just beautifully and remains my pineapple of choice for this recipe.

The glaze is made with honey and a pat of butter or two, just melted until combined, then swirled gently in a cake pan.  The pineapple rings go on top and the holes are filled with a cherry.  I used Luxardo cherries (the ones I use in cocktails) because I don’t care for classic red maraschinos, but I remember a day when I did.  You can also use fresh cherries, just cut them in half and remove the pit first.  As for the batter, it has a bit of cornmeal in it for texture — a good tip I got from Southern Living Magazine.  This cake is a simple classic summertime dessert that tastes so good after a meal of barbecue or other grilled foods.

Ingredients

Topping

1 cup honey, any variety

2 tablespoons salted butter

20 ounce can pineapple rings, drained

8 to 9 maraschino cherries, any variety

Cake

12 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup buttermilk, or whole milk with 2 teaspoons white vinegar

(Serves 8-10)

To Prepare:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray or oil a 10-inch cake pan, set aside.
2. In a small saucepan, add honey and butter.  Place over medium heat and cook until boiling, stir.  Remove from heat and pour into prepared pan, swirl to coat bottom.
3. Place pineapple rings on top of honey.  Cut to fit rings, if necessary to fit bottom of pan.  Place a cherry in each hole.
4. In a stand mixer or large bowl, cream butter and sugar for 3 minutes.  Scrape down sides and add vanilla.  Mix for 1 minute.
5. Add eggs one-at-a-time until incorporated.
6. Whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add 1/3 of dry ingredients to wet and 1/3 of buttermilk.  Mix on low for 1 minute.  Repeat twice more.
7. Spoon batter over pineapple rings and smooth out on top.  Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes clean.  Remove and let cool 10 minutes before loosening around edges with knife and inverting onto cake pan or stand.
8. Slice and serve.  Enjoy!