A true dazzler, Pineapple Upside-Down Cake is a classic, vintage cake that is simple to make yet produces stunning results with a beautiful mosaic of pineapple and cherries on top.
I love hearing about other family’s food traditions and how they celebrate birthdays and other milestone moments. That’s why I put a call out to the Dish & Tell Club to share their family-favorite, special-occasion desserts that dazzle. This Pineapple Upside-Down Cake does just that!
Nikki, who happens to be one of my neighbors as well as a Dish & Teller, shared this recipe that comes from her grandmother Elaine and has been in her family for years.
“This was one of my dad’s favorite cakes growing up. My grandma would make it all the time for his birthdays,” said Nikki. “It’s easy and I love how the butter and brown sugar soaks into the cake.”
It’s a classic, vintage cake that is pretty simple to make yet produces stunning results with a beautiful mosaic of pineapple and cherries on top.
After learning a bit more about Elaine, it’s only fitting that she would make this absolute head-turner-of-a-cake! Nikki says Elaine was definitely her “fancy” grandma, and even though she was a homemaker, she was rarely seen without her nylon stockings and CoverGirl “Love that Pink” lipstick.
Another fun memory that Nikki shared was how Elaine and her sister would wear the same dress on Christmas Eve and serve the same hotdish. They’d ask the guests who looked the best and which hotdish they liked better! Maybe some sisterly, albeit friendly, rivalry, but doesn’t that sound like a total hoot?
Well, no contest here, Elaine’s Pineapple Upside-Down Cake is a true winner. It’s a delicious, dazzling cake that will certainly brighten up any room it walks into, and from the sounds of it, that was probably true of Elaine as well!
Tips from Nikki:
- Melt the butter right in the pan by placing the pan in the oven while it is pre-heating; add the brown sugar after. Just make sure the sugar dissolves nicely.
- The recipe calls for separating the eggs, and whisking the egg whites until “fluffy.” Since I am always second-guessing how much to whisk or beat eggs for a cake recipe, I asked Nikki for a bit more detail about fluffy egg whites. She said make sure the your bowl is absolutely clean with no grease, etc. She also shared this video which I found super helpful! The goal is to get a consistency where the eggs stick nicely to the whisk but droop a bit off the end—not too stiff.
