The Pineapple Upside Down Cake is a retro classic! It’s a fun and easy recipe that is perfect with ice cream or custard, or simply on its own!
I always find the old fashioned recipes are the most popular and a pineapple upside down cake is no exception.
It looks so pretty with the yellow pineapple rings and the vibrant pillarbox red cherries. I just love glace cherries – if you also love them, you are bound to love this coconut and cherry loaf cake too!
This is one really delicious cake – soft, light, fluffy sponge topped with juicy pineapple slices and cherries. It’s equally lovely just on its own with a cup of tea, or served as a pudding with custard, ice cream or pouring cream.
Other cakes that fall into the category of “perfect for a sweet treat in the afternoon with a cuppa or great as a dessert” are Apple Crumble Cake, Orange Marmalade Cake, Plum Amaretti Crumble Cake or a classic Gingerbread Loaf Cake.
ingredient list
- Demerara sugar – for sprinkling over the base of the tin
- tinned – yes, tinned for that retro feel! pineapple rings in juice
- glace or maraschino cherries – I used a mixture of both for this cake because I ran out of the maraschino cherries!
- butter
- caster sugar
- eggs
- plain flour**
- baking powder
- bicarbonate of soda
- **You could use self raising flour if you don’t have any plain – but omit the bicarbonate of soda and add less baking powder (scroll to the bottom of the post for the recipe card)
equipment list
- a 20cm round cake tin – preferably non stick
- a small palette knife for loosening the edges of the cake from the tin
troubleshooting tips
The top of the cake might look like it is browning too much about half way through the baking time. Cover with a piece of baking paper to prevent the top from getting too dark.
When making any kind of upside down cake, be sure to use a reliable cake tin. You don’t want to use one that is prone to sticking!
Grease the cake tin with butter really well – you aren’t using baking paper and you want the cake to slip out without sticking to the sides of the tin!
As you can see in the picture below, my cake did stick to the tin a little – but honestly, if it does it’s no big deal. It still tastes great and no-one will care!
If you release the cake and some pineapple slices are stuck to the tin, simply remove them and place them on the cake. No-one will know!
more easy cake recipes
Chocolate Caramel Mars Bar Cake
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
The Pineapple Upside Down Cake is a retro classic! It's a fun and easy recipe that is perfect with ice cream or custard, or simply on its own!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp demerara sugar
- 6 slices of tinned pineapple in juice
- 11 glace or maraschino cherries
- 200g soft butter
- 200g caster (super fine) sugar
- 3 medium eggs
- 200g plain (all purpose) flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 3-4 tbsp pineapple juice from the tin
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160Fan/Gas mark 4. Generously grease a 20cm round cake tin with butter.
- Sprinkle the two tablespoons of Demerara sugar all over the base of the cake tin. Arrange the pineapple slices over the base of the tin in a single layer. Place a cherry in the centre of each pineapple ring and between the slices.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until very light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Fold in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda until just combined. Fold in the pineapple juice.
- Pour the cake batter into the tin and bake for 40-45 minutes. If the top looks like it is browning too much, place a piece of baking parchment on top.
- When the top of the cake is springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake emerges clean, remove from the oven. Loosen the sides of the cake from the tin with a spatula. Place a plate on top of the cake tin and quickly invert. Carefully pull away the tin. With any luck, your cake should have come away from the tin easily! If it doesn't, it will still taste delicious and no-one will care! If any of the pineapple rings have stuck to the cake tin, simply remove and place them back on the cake.
- This cake can be served warm or cold on its own or with custard, pouring cream or ice cream.
Notes
You could use self raising flour if you don't have any plain - but omit the bicarbonate of soda and add just 1 teaspoon baking powder.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 235Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 92mgSodium: 261mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 2g
Calories and Nutritional information is calculated by a third party application and should be used as indicative figures only.